


The Stars Around Us

by mme_pancakes6



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Gryffindor, Hogwarts, Marauders, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Regulus Black Deserves Better, Slow Burn, Slytherin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-22
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:35:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 26,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27666197
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mme_pancakes6/pseuds/mme_pancakes6
Summary: Hogwarts 1978Before Florence left for Hogwarts, the advice her friends had left her with was "stay out of trouble." Upsetting Regulus Black was everything Florence was supposed to avoid.Shit.(Warnings: mild language, violence, and death.)
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Marlene McKinnon/Dorcas Meadowes, Regulus Black/Original Female Character(s), Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 7
Kudos: 40





	1. Authors' Note

To the reader, 

We started this fic because Harry Potter had a huge impact on our childhoods. It filled it with magic and great memories and, in times of covid and 2020 in general, we decided we needed more of that. But what we want to make clear is that we do not, in any way, stand with jkr and her views. Harry potter is literally all about love, acceptance, and fighting evil bitches. It is so disappointing to see the blatant bigotry she holds for the Trans, Jewish, LGBTQ+, and BIPOC communities. Harry Potter has always had a special space in our hearts, so we believe that the fandom claiming and repurposing the story of Harry Potter is a beautiful thing. 

We believe that everyone’s existence should be celebrated and respected. 

With that being said, please enjoy!! 

\- P & M. 


	2. Prologue

September 1st 1972 

It was a busy morning at King Cross station. The air was filled with noise from chattering people rushing to get to places. Crowds of people hurried through the station. In the midst of this chaos stood a white haired old aged woman, and confused young girl reading off of a letter. They were standing with a trolley that held a single trunk. Only one of them would be travelling today. 

“Florence, I’m already running late for my appointment. Can you find the platform on your own?” 

The girl nodded, let go of her grandmother's hand, and went off by herself through the busy train station looking for her train platform. It wasn’t her first time at the station but it was certainly her first time looking for Platform 9 ¾ . As she weaved through the crowds of people, she spotted a young boy, the same age or older than her, with his two parents and an owl in a cage. As Florence approached the family, she heard them speaking to each other.

“James, if I get a single letter from Professor Mcgonagall about your behavior, i’m going to take your broom for a month.” The boy’s mother said to him. Florence knew they could help her, for she recognized the name. Professor Mcgonagall had been the one to invite her to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry. Florence reached out to the boy’s father and tugged his sleeve to get his attention. 

“Excuse me, sir,” she said softly, “Can you help me find the train?” She held her Hogwarts letter and ticket up to him. He looked down at the girl and gave her a warm smile. 

“Oh, is it your first year at Hogwarts, dear?” Florence gave him a nod. The man turned towards his wife, who was still walking, and called out, “Honey, wait a moment.” The woman turned around and noticed the small girl next to her husband. 

“What’s your name sweetheart? Are you lost?” The woman’s voice was very soft and sweet. “Where are your parents?”

“My grandma had to go, so she told me to find the platform on my own,” Florence responded. 

“Oh nonsense! You can come with us. My name is Euphemia Potter, but you can call me Effie. This is my husband Fleamont and my son James. He’s also a student at Hogwarts.” She gestured to the boy she had been scolding earlier. He had brown hair and wore round-framed glasses. 

“I’m going to be a second year at Hogwarts this year!” James said with a beaming smile as he walked up to Florence. “and I’m going to join the Quidditch team!” 

“What’s Quidditch?” James’ eyes widened and he gasped at Florence’s question. 

“You don't know about Quidditch? You must be a muggleborn.”

“Muggle-born?” said an even more confused Florence. James let out a yelp as his mother pinched his arm. 

“James, don’t be rude!” 

“A muggle is a non-magical person. A muggle-born is a witch or wizard who has no magical parents.” Fleamont explained to her. Based on the look on her face, he added, “It’s not a bad thing, don’t worry.” 

“I’ll tell you all about Quidditch on our way there. You can sit with my friends and I on the train!” 

The Potter family guided her to the platform. Fleamont had offered to take Florence’s belongings until they had to be boarded. The walk and been filled with questions Florence had about the magical world, which they answered happily. They stopped in front of a brick wall. 

“After you,” Fleamont said to James and Florence. James grabbed her hand suddenly and started running towards the wall. 

“Let's hurry up! I can’t wait ‘till you meet the boys!” 

“What are you doing?!” she screamed, her feet trying to catch up with the rest of her body. “There’s a wall there! We’re gonna hurt ourselves!” James laughed loudly, but kept going. She tried to slow them down, to which he responded with wrapping his arms around her and pulling her through the wall. 

They had gone through the wall onto Platform 9 ¾ . It was like nothing Florence had ever experienced before. It was similar to the other platforms at the station, except the atmosphere was completely different. Sparks and owls were flying through the air, people were wearing strange but colorful clothes. Florence’s eyes widened. All the fear she had felt was replaced with amazement. She looked at James with a huge smile on her face. 

“Now you know you can trust me,” he said with a cheeky smile. “Come on, let’s get on the train.” 

They said their goodbyes to Fleamont and Euphemia, and They boarded the Hogwarts Express. 

James led her through the long train cars, past both empty and full compartments, until he reached the compartment where three boys were already seated. James enthusiastically introduced each of them to Florence: The short boy eating snacks as Peter Pettigrew, the cocky boy with dark hair he’d been growing out all summer as Sirius Black, and the lanky boy whose skin was littered with scars as Remus Lupin. 

On their way to Hogwarts, James bought Florence some Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans from the trolly. The boys overwhelmed her with questions and information about what her life was soon to become. 

“You’re a first year?” Sirius asked her. Florence nodded, her mouth filled with candy. “My brother is too! His name is Regulus. I hope he’s sorted into Gryffindor like us.” 

The boys explained to her how they were all in Gryffindor, the house of the brave. 

“I bet you’ll be sorted into Gryffindor!” said an excited James. 

“You’ll fit right in, and then you’ll already have friends!” Added Petter. 

“Yes, and you would really get along with Lily and Marlene, they’re in Gryffindor too.” Remus contributed. 

“James here has been in love with Lily ever since his first day at Hogwarts.” Sirius teased. James rolled his eyes and put his hand over his heart dramatically. 

“I’m going to marry that girl someday.” He sighed. They all laughed. 

When they arrived at Hogwarts, Florence and the boys had to part ways. She joined all the first years as they all awaited for their name to be called for the sorting. They were instructed to stand in alphabetical order, and the girl in front of Florence introduced herself as Dorcas Meadowes. She had dark brown skin and hair that reached her shoulders. Before their names were called, they watched other first years get sorted. This included Sirius’ little brother Regulus getting sorted into Slytherin, to which Florence noticed the devastated look on Sirius’ face. After anxiously waiting for longer and hearing the sorting hat shout “Gryffindor!” after being placed on Dorcas’ head, her name was finally called. 

“Moreau, Florence,” Mcgonagall read off of her list. Florence made her way through the great hall, staring at her feet to make sure that she didn't trip. She sat on the stool and the hat was placed onto her head. 

“Hmm… you have a great mind… perhaps Ravenclaw? No, I know just the place for you. Better be…” Florence held her breath as she stared at the faces of her new friends ahead of her. 

“Gryffindor!” 

The Gryffindor erupted into cheers, just as they had done for the previous new additions to their house. A huge smile spread on her face as she was flooded with relief. She hopped down and hurried towards the table. Her new friends, James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter, were all clapping and cheering for her as she got there. 

In that moment, she felt as if she had found her family. 


	3. The Farewell

September 1st 1978

King cross station had always been a place that meant good things were about to happen. It had been the place where her life had changed forever all those years ago. The place where she met her closest friends. But right now, platform 9 ¾ wasn’t as exciting as it had once been. Things were different now. Voldemort was becoming more powerful by the second and the ministry couldn’t be trusted anymore. Muggles were being murdered, and muggleborns had a price on their heads. 

She had considered not returning. Why would she? Her closest friends had graduated the year before and were now preparing themselves to fight in a war, so going to school felt useless. Florence was sitting on a bench that looked over the train station, lost in her thoughts, until a voice interrupted her. 

Florence had a lonely childhood growing up, being raised by her muggle grandmother and had no siblings. But the day she met James was the day she got a brother, which was followed by six other Gryffindors whom she had grown to love like family. She didn’t want anything to happen to them during the war, and least of all she didn’t want to be at Hogwarts if something were to happen.

“Sickle for your thoughts?” she could recognize that voice anywhere; it was James Potter. She looked up and there he was, his smiling face, messy brown hair and round framed glasses. He sat next to her. 

“I just wish I could stay and help with The Order,” her voice was soft. 

The Order of Phoenix. A secret society led by Dumbledore that fought to take down Voldemort and his faithful followers. Most of her close friends had joined this summer. 

“Hogwarts is the safest place that you could be in right now. And you know you can't join the order unless you are of age,” his voice was soft but firm, they had already had this conversation far too many times. “Besides, you really think my Mum would let you be a dropout? She would murder me if she found out I let you do that. And what would my wife say?”

A small smile appeared on Florence’s face, “You know, just because you’re married now doesn’t mean you can’t call her by her name.”

“Maybe, but I’ll just keep calling her my wife until I actually believe she married me.” 

It had been three weeks since James and Lily had gotten married, with a small but beautiful ceremony. Under normal circumstances, people would’ve thought that they were insane for doing that after only being together a little over a year, but things were different now. Times were uncertain, and if you were in love there is no point in wasting time. You might not live long enough to get the chance to get married.

James had fallen in love with Lily Evans the moment he laid eyes on her. Over the years, he worked hard to win her affection. Lily, however, fell in love with him slowly. She went from seeing an arrogant boy who liked his hair messy and pranking innocent first years, to the boy who loved his friends like family and who would do anything for them. Everyone could see how genuine their love for each other was. The wedding had been the happiest they had all been in weeks. 

“You know, I did think she was gonna go for Moony,” she said in a joking manner.

“Oh, shut up.”

“Maybe even Marlene...”

“Nah, they’re too busy with Dorcas to even look at Lily.”

“Yeah, I guess you were the only option left,” she teased. James looked at her with a fake offended expression. 

“Hey, respect your elders!”

“You’re barely a year older than me.”

“I could be a day older and the same would still ring true,” he huffed.

“Sure, keep telling yourself that, Potter.” Florence paused, “ Jokes aside, I’m so glad you two found each other. Somebody has to keep you entertained when I leave” she smiled at him, then more seriously, said, “You better take care of her while I’m gone.” 

“Of course,” he assured.

James knew exactly what she meant. Like Florence, Lily was a muggleborn. With the rise of he-who-shall-not-be-named, muggle and muggleborn lives were at risk. In these times, blood status could be the difference between life and death. The number of Muggles and muggleborns being murdered by death eaters was going up at an alarming rate.

“What are you guys going to do now?” She said after a moment. 

“Well, we are waiting for news from the order. But Lily and I, we were thinking of finding our own place, you know, move out and be a little more independent.” 

“I can’t wait to know what Effie says about her baby boy leaving the house. Does this mean I can use your room as a closet? Or maybe I could put a cauldron in there. I have many ideas of what I could do with the extra space,” she thought out loud. James laughed loudly at her suggestion. 

Ever since things had become more dangerous for muggles, Florence decided it would be best to leave her grandmother behind. The further away from the wizarding world she was, the safer she would be. This meant that Florence had to cut all ties with her grandmother. No more owls or visits. It had been a few months since Florence had left the muggle world behind, and she had stayed at the Potter’s house ever since. Euphemia and Fleamont Potter had treated her like a daughter the moment James had invited her to spend the holidays at his house during her first year. It had become tradition that Florence would spend Christmas and Easter with the Potters. They were later joined by Sirius Black, James’ best friend, during Florence’s fifth year at Hogwarts. 

Unlike the Potters, the Black family believed in the importance of blood status and superiority, coming from a long line of Slytherin pure-blood wizards. Sirius, however, was the opposite of his family. The moment he was sorted into Gryffindor, he was treated like an outcast. He was indifferent to blood status and that made him a “blood traitor” and a “disgrace to the Black family.” After years of hostility and abuse, Sirius left and moved in with the Potters. 

“Once we pick out a place I’ll owl you. Maybe you can come visit. I’m sure Minnie would be okay with letting you out for a few days.” 

“Maybe, if I haven’t given her too much of a hard time already. One more scare and she’ll have a heart attack,” Florence joked. They laughed. After a moment, Florence spoke again.

“I’m going to miss you,” she said quietly, as if saying it made her leaving more real. James’ expression became softer and his tone became more serious.

“I’ll miss you too. We all will. I know you want to stay but,” he paused trying to find the right words, “I need to know you’ll be safe. Right now, as long as Dumbledore is headmaster, Hogwarts is the safest place to be.” 

“I know that, but I can help. You know I can.” 

“And you will, once you graduate. The war isn’t gonna go anywhere while you’re gone,” he assured, putting a hand on her shoulder. To lighten the mood, he added, “I’ll make sure to tell You-Know-Who to wait for you to finish school the next time I see him.” 

A small smile formed on Florence‘s face. She rested her head on James’ shoulder. They stayed in that position for a while, watching people walk by, and trying to hold on to the moment for a little longer. 

“Oh Merlin, I’ll just do it!” James spoke suddenly, making Florence jump.

“Do what?”

James reached for something in his pocket. “I was supposed to wait for the boys to get here, but you know I hate seeing you upset.” 

He grabbed her hand and gave what seemed like an old piece of parchment, but she recognized it right away. The Marauders Map. A complete and intricate map of Hogwarts that showed the user the whereabouts of every person in the castle. 

“No way! Are you being serious?” Her expression had changed from her formerly sullen look. Her eyes lit up and she wore a bright smile on her face. 

James smiled at her, “Why wouldn’t I be serious? Besides, it’s not like we’re gonna need it anymore. Avoid getting caught, would you?” 

She threw her arms around him, “Thank you, James.” He hugged her back and gave her a tight squeeze.

“Just, remember to have fun, okay?” 

“It’ll be hard without all you guys, but I’ll manage,” she pulled back to look up at him. Just as James was about to respond, they were interrupted by a loud scream.

“Hurry! We’re gonna miss them!” 

James and Florence recognized the voice immediately: Sirius Black. The scream was followed by an exasperated response from Remus Lupin. 

“The train isn’t even boarding yet! Why are we running?” he said. 

“My legs are short! I can’t keep up! Slow down!” gasped an out of breath Peter Pettigrew. 

“Hey! Over here!” James waved them over. 

“Oh thank Merlin!” Sirius exclaimed, folding over and putting his hands on his knees. “We thought we had missed you!” 

“ _Sirius_ thought we had missed you,” Remus retorted, “Peter and I were just fine until he started dragging us across the platform.” James had started to speak until he noticed something was wrong. 

“Where's Lily?” said James. 

“What do you mean ‘where’s Lily?’” Sirius looked around for the redhead who he had believed was with them. “I thought Peter had her!” 

“She spotted Marlene and Dorcas a while back and left with them to catch up,” Peter said, still panting from the exercise that Sirius had put him through. 

Sirius noticed something in Florence’s hand and gasped, “You didn’t wait for us? You traitor... How could you, Prongs?” He accused, looking at James.

“It's her fault! She was sad and you know how I get when she’s sad. I had to make her happy! You would’ve done the same!” James explained frantically.

While Sirius and James were having their petty argument, Remus and Peter made their way over to Florence to say their goodbyes.

“We brought you something,” said Peter, reaching for something in a paper bag he was carrying. He gave her a Cadbury chocolate bar. “I remembered you mentioned you liked them at the beginning of this summer. I spotted it and thought you’d enjoy it on your ride to Hogwarts.” 

“Aw, thanks Pete,” she gave him a quick but affectionate hug.

“We also brought this, as a congratulations on getting to your final year, ”said Remus with his hand behind his back. He revealed a bouquet of red carnations. 

“Red for Gryffindor!” Sirius shouted once he realized they were giving Florence the gifts. “You better beat Slytherin and win the Quidditch cup, Moreau.” He jabbed a finger at her. 

James puffed his chest, “I know it’ll be hard now that you lost the best Quidditch player to ever walk at Hogwarts, but makes us proud.” 

“Oh don’t flatter yourself. You were average at best,” Florence teased, shoving James with her elbow. She looked back to everyone and said, “Thank you for the flowers boys, I love them!” She gave them a warm smile.

James seemed to ignore the last part and backtracked to the Quidditch talk,“Oh yeah? Could “average” become Quidditch captain sixth year and win-not one-but two Quidditch cups?” James started to get worked up, but was distracted by two hands covering his eyes. Florence grinned. 

“Guess who?” 

James’ demeanor completely switched from his formerly aggressive tone as he said, “Is it… the most beautiful and amazing woman I’ve ever had the honor of meeting?” He turned around and picked Lily up in his arms, spun her around and gave her a kiss on the lips. Everyone groaned in annoyance at the couple as they, with the new addition of Marlene and Dorcas to the group, watched. 

“Oi! No PDA in front of the kids!” Florence covered Peter’s eyes, which he quickly swatted away. 

“Florence, darling. We’re gonna miss you!” said Lily reaching out to hug her. “The girls and I were talking about how for Christmas break we should try and have a little girls’ getaway.”

“Without you two here, we are going to be the minority,” said Marlene while pointing at Dorcas and Florence. Lily and Marlene had graduated the year prior, and the four of them had been roommates and became very close friends. 

“Yeah well, Hogwarts will be a drag without you lot there,” Dorcas said with a huff. She looked over at Florence and said, “At least we have each other, right?” 

“As long as you don’t snore we’ll be just fine,” Florence retorted. 

“Oh, her snoring has gotten better,” Marlene said with a smirk. The tips of Dorcas’ ears turned red at her comment.

“Has it now? How would you know?” Lily teased the girls. 

“Well Lily, when a woman loves another woman-” Marlene began.

“Oh, shut it!” Florence covered her ears dramatically as the girls laughed. 

“Florence, we know that you’re sexually frustrated due to 16 years of celibacy, but you can’t take it out on all the happy couples,” Marlene said as she threw her arm around Dorcas’ shoulder. Florence was about to respond when a loud train whistle interrupted. It was time to board the Hogwarts express. 

“Saved by the bell I see,” said Dorcas in a teasing manner.

Florence did not laugh at the joke. For a moment she had forgotten the reason she had been at the train station. It was time to board the train and leave her friends behind. She was filled with dread at the sudden realization that this might be the last time she’ll see her friends. At least for a while.

Dorcas and Marlene stepped away to say their goodbyes. 

“Hey, it’s going to be okay. Don’t worry about us, we’ll be safe, I promise.” Remus reassured her, putting his hand on her shoulder and giving it a squeeze. Florence always appreciated how Remus always knew what to say. “We’ll write to you every week and give you updates.” 

She smiled at him as he reached for a hug. “Take care Remus, I mean it. I left you some Grand Wiggenweld and Murtlap Essence to ease the pain. I couldn’t make a lot of Wiggenweld, so only use it for serious injuries. It should be enough to last for the semester, but if it’s not enough, make sure to owl me.” 

“I will. Thank you so much Alchem, you have no idea how much I appreciate it.” Alchem had been a nickname the boys had given her a few years ago: short for Alchemist. This came from her talent at potion brewing, which was often used in pranks made by her friends, which soon morphed into her using her talent to brew healing potions for Remus’ moon-related wounds. Remus kissed the top of Florence’s head and spoke, “Stay safe, will you?” 

Remus let go of Florence and stepped away to walk over to Dorcas. They each took turns to say goodbye before her and Dorcas had to board. 

“Don’t miss me too much while you’re at school,” Peter had come up to her as soon as Remus had left her side. “Remember, if you’re ever hungry, just go under the Great Hall, down the staircase near to the Hufflepuff commons and tickle the pear.”

“Of course Peter, how could I forget?” She gave him a tight hug to say goodbye, “Thank you for the chocolate bar and the flowers.” He kissed her cheek and left quickly. He went towards Remus who was saying farewell to Dorcas. 

“What was that about?” Lily’s voice came from behind. Marlene was walking next to her, as they approached Florence. 

“Finished snogging your girlfriend, have we?” Florence said, turning to Marlene. 

“Don’t change the subject. Does little Peter have a crush on you?” Florence scoffed at Marlene’s suggestion. “Oh we have to tell the boys!” 

“There’s nothing to tell, really. He was just being sweet.” 

“Sure, okay.. But I’ll never let you live it down,” Marlene said, crossing her arms. This made Lily laugh. 

“Euphemia will love to hear about this!” Lily said as Florence huffed. 

“Oh, we’re just messing with you! But make sure you invite us to the wedding,” Marlene hugged Florence and kissed her on the cheek. “I’m gonna miss having you around. Take care and try to keep Dorcas out of trouble. Don’t suck her into any of your crazy ideas, okay? Owl us once you get there.” and with that, Marlene left and joined the others. Lily reached out and grabbed Florence’s hand.

“I know it feels awful having to go to school right now and I know you and Dorcas want to help, but please, for the love of Merlin, don’t go looking for trouble.” Lily wore a worried expression, something something. “Keep low and don’t do anything stupid, okay? Stay safe and stay together. We can't afford to lose anyone, especially you guys.” Lily said with a serious look on her face. 

“I’ll do my best.” Lily gave her a questioning look. Florence put her hands up in defense, and continued, “Alright, I promise. I’ll stay out of trouble. You better owl me weekly. Please, just be careful and stay alive.” Florence's expression changed and her voice was filled with worry. 

“Don’t worry,” she gave her a reassuring smile and wrapped her arms around her in a hug. “We’ll all be okay. I’ll make sure of it.” Florence let out a sigh and pulled back from the hug, keeping her hands on Lily’s shoulders so she could look at her face. 

“I’ll miss you, Lils.” 

“I’ll miss you too. Enjoy your last year at Hogwarts, love. I’ll see you soon.” 

As Lily finished wishing Florence farewell, James was standing a few feet away watching the two girls saying their goodbyes. Lily noticed him standing there and walked towards the others to give them some privacy. James’ and Florence’s relationship had always been very close. They were like siblings. They had always been there for each other, and now, for the first time in years, they would have to go separate ways. Their eyes met and Florence knew he was thinking the same thing. She walked up to him and wrapped her arms around his torso.

“I’m scared,” her voice was soft and filled with dread.

“I know. Me too.” 

“You can’t die.”

“I won’t.”

“You don't know that.” Florence tore apart from the hug and looked up at James but he just gave her a reassuring look. 

“Yes, I do. Before you know it it will be Christmas and we will all be together again.” Florence gave him a weak nod. James continued,“Mum wanted me to make sure you packed everything you needed, but if you forgot anything we will send it right away.”

“No, I have everything I need. We double checked last night.” 

“Of course you did. Remember to be safe, have fun and don't get caught. But if you do, just remember that Minnie’s favorite snacks are chocolate frogs.” This made Florence giggle. James had always been the type to beg for forgiveness, rather than ask for permission. 

“That's my girl. I’m gonna make sure your things are boarded while you finish saying goodbyes to everyone. I will see you in a few months, okay? I love you.” He kissed her forehead and left. 

There was only one person she hadn’t wished farewell to: Sirius. He was sitting on the same bench she had been a few minutes earlier, lost in thought. Florence sat next to him, she had a short amount of time before she had to get on the train. Sirius looked at her and smiled. 

“Don’t get into too much trouble,” he said with a playful tone.

“You’re one to talk,” she scoffed. 

“I do have a nice record, don’t I?” he said with a smirk. “Hogwarts will be a bore without me. Don’t worry, it’s just a few months and you get to be in my presence again.”

“Oh hush. A few months is hardly enough time away from you,” Florence retorted, then paused and looked at the station before saying, “Don’t be stupid, okay? I know you like to pretend that it wouldn’t matter if you get hurt, but that’s not true. Please take care. If not for yourself, then for Remus.” She looked back at him and gave him and smiled softly. “Keep an eye out for him, okay? I made enough Wiggenweld and Murtlap to last till christmas. If he runs out, let me know, cause we both know that he won’t. And _don't_ forget to owl me.” 

Sirius gave her a small, bittersweet smile, and said, “I will owl you every day if you wish. I’ll make sure Moony takes the potion and gets enough sleep, and I will be careful, I swear. And you should too, Miss ‘I’ll drop out of school and make illegal potions for the Order,’” he teased. Florence rolled her eyes. They were quiet for a few seconds, until Sirius looked at her with a firm expression and said, “Look, I know you like to see the good in people, but now really isn’t the time. You will be safe at Hogwarts, Dumbledore will make sure all muggleborns are. But don’t provoke anyone. Only talk to people you completely trust, and avoid all pure-bloods, especially Slytherins.” Florence didn’t like hearing this. She knew that she had to be safe, but avoiding an entire group of people did not seem reasonable. 

“Sirius I can't just-”

“Yes, you can.” His voice was firm. He reached his hand across her lap and took her hand in his. “You don’t know what they’re capable of, okay? They’re terrible, terrible people. Just promise me you won’t do anything stupid.” He looked at her with pleading eyes. 

She frowned but nodded, “Okay, I promise.” 

“I’m sorry, I really wish things weren’t like this. I just want to protect you. I grew up surrounded by these people. I thought I knew what they were capable of then, but I see now that I didn't. The things they’re doing out there…” he paused for a moment, shook his head, then said, “I thought the time I spent with my family was the worst it could get. I just… I don’t want anyone to go through the pain that I have.” He stated, staring down at his shoes. He let out a sigh. He opened his mouth to add on, but decided against it. 

Florence knew what Sirius was trying to say. He would never admit it, but he missed his younger brother, Regulus, dearly. He had been the only reason Sirius had stayed at the Black house for so long enduring the pain and abuse his Mother and Father treated him with. But Regulus had been the perfect son, being sorted in Slytherin and following all the beliefs the Blacks family held. Despite them not being on speaking terms ever since Sirius ran away, he always made sure to look out for Regulus. But now Sirius had graduated and wouldn't be able to see him. 

“I’ll keep an eye out for him,” said Florence with determination in her voice. Before Sirius could protest she continued, “I won’t talk to him, just make sure he’s alive and well.” He gaped at her, surprised at how well she could read him.

“Thank you,” his voice was small but grateful. He put his arm around her shoulder and kissed her forehead, “I’m going to miss you, Alchem.” 

She put her arm over his torso, “I’m going to miss you too, Pads.”

The train whistle sounded once again, it was finally time to leave. She turned around and gave everyone a warm smile, making sure she glanced over each of their faces. She wanted to remember every detail, just in case this would be the last time they were all together like this. Florence waved goodbye for the final time, then stepped onto the train. Dorcas and Florence stood inside of the train for a moment, wearing somber expressions. 

“Ready for school?” Dorcas asked.

“Ready as I'll ever be.” 

There was no escaping it now. Florence would begin her last year at Hogwarts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was the first chapter!! Special thanks to regulusprompts on tumblr for helping with feedback and edits!!


	4. Advanced Potions

The ride to Hogwarts was quieter than it had ever been. Usually it was hard to find empty compartments, but this year there were plenty unoccupied. Dorcas and Florence ran into Charlotte Green and sat together in one of the compartments. Charlotte was on the Gryffindor Quidditch team with Florence and Marlene, and they had been friends since first year. The ride had been rather quiet, with Charlotte doing most of the talking. After they arrived, the three of them set their things in their shared dorm. The room consisted of five beds and a small common space decorated with their House colours: Red and Gold. 

“I guess it’s just us this year huh,” said Charlotte as she was making her bed. 

“Margaret isn’t coming?” asked Dorcas. 

“No, her parents fled the country. Mine almost did too,” Charlotte explained with a sad expression. Margaret and Charlotte had always been close. They avoided trouble at all costs, which usually meant avoiding her roommates and their friends from the grade above. “But we decided I would finish the school year and we’d leave.” 

Florence understood why so many people were fleeing, but she did not feel it was the right thing to do. It seemed unfair that people were losing their lives and some decided they wouldn’t stay and fight for them. But, she decided not to comment on it. She had promised many people that she would stay out of trouble and she intended to keep that promise. 

That evening they went to the annual welcome feast. Fewer kids than usual were sorted because parents were scared of sending their kids to Hogwarts, and the kids that did come to school were worried for what the year would bring. Hogwarts had never been this empty. Dumbledore gave his usual speech, but this time he called for unity between houses and for students to take care of each other. Everyone was aware this would be a challenging and uncertain year. Soon after the feast, the students were sent back to their common rooms to prepare for their first day of classes. Florence’s first night at Hogwarts was not a pleasant one. The mixture of nerves, and dread for the future kept her awake. The snores coming from Dorcas’ bed didn’t help much either. Florence just reassured herself that everything would be fine, and that she’d be able to get back to the Order soon. 

The next morning, Florence had decided that she would try to make the best of her last year at Hogwarts. She was extremely grateful that Dorcas was the same year as her so that she didn't have to make it through the year alone. The three roommates made their way down to the great hall for breakfast. They were eating and discussing their classes when a third year Slytherin girl came up to Florence. 

“Professor Slughorn sent you this,” the Slytherin passed her a handwritten letter. 

_Miss Moreau,_

_I am delighted to have you in my advanced potions class this year! Would you please see me before class begins today? I have something important I would like to discuss with you._

_Professor Slughorn_

“What does it say?” Dorcas asked Florence as she read the note. She had always excelled in her potions, so it was no surprise that she had become one of Slughorn’s favorite students. 

“I have to go,” said Florence as she grabbed her belongings. “Slughorn wants to discuss something important with me before class. I’ll see you in Herbology!” With that she rushed to the dungeons. 

When Florence reached the potions classroom, the door was locked. She assumed Slughorn was probably finishing breakfast and would come eventually, so decided to wait. She was standing outside of the classroom when she heard someone walking down the hall. Expecting Professor Slughorn, she spun around with a smile on her lips and a greeting on the tip of her tongue, but she stopped herself when she realized who the footsteps really belonged to. 

It was Regulus Black. He had changed since the last time she’d seen him. He was taller, his features were sharper and more mature. His dark hair contrasted with his pale skin. His grey eyes remained stern and cold as he stared ahead. He wore his Slytherin tie loosely, a small sign of rebellion to his proper image. Or perhaps he was too tired to tie it properly, as the prominent circles under his eyes made it clear he hadn’t been sleeping. He usually carried a haughty, arrogant expression, but right now he just seemed exhausted. 

Florence snapped out of her thoughts as he approached her. They hadn’t spoken since Sirius had ran away. Instead of walking past her with no acknowledgement as she had assumed he would, he stepped in front of her and tried to open the classroom door. Florence was confused. There was still quite a bit of time before class started, what was he doing here so early? Before she could say anything, a voice interrupted. 

“Oh lovely! You’re both already here,” the cheerful voice of Slughorn called behind them, “I wouldn’t expect less from my best students!” He pulled out his wand, unlocked the door, and ushered them into the classroom. 

Regulus and Florence were confused as to why they were both called to class so early, but they followed him into the classroom nonetheless. 

“How was your summer, dear?” Slughorn asked Florence.

She wasn’t quite sure how to answer, so she settled on, “It was pretty nice.” This summer had been filled with fear and uncertainty due to the war, but she didn’t say anything about it. Slughorn always spoke as if nothing had been happening with you-know-who. “Lily and James loved the wedding gift you gave them.”

“Ah yes, a beautiful cauldron. Good kids they are. Very in love,” Slughorn smiled at the mention of James and Lily. The couple were also some of his favorite students. Just like Regulus and Florence, James and Lily were part of the Slug Club: the group Slughorn had formed with students who were talented or came from powerful families. “And what about you, boy? How’s Walburga?” He turned to ask Regulus. 

“She’s doing great,” Regulus’ voice was raspy and soft, as if he weren’t quite used to using it. His words were void of emotion. It was clear to Florence that he did not appreciate his mother being brought up; Sirius would do the same thing whenever his family was mentioned. 

“Sir, may I ask what we’re here for?” Florence asked. 

“Oh, I do suppose the letters I wrote you were rather cryptic, so I apologize for that. Would either of you like some tea?” Professor Slughorn offered, as he pulled out his wand and pulled up two chairs for them. “Please, sit.” 

“Professor, why have you called us here?” Regulus spoke impatiently, as though he had better things to do than to hear what Slughorn had to say. 

“Well you see, I was preparing my tea this morning and as I was looking over the members of this class and I was so pleased to see both of you here!” he smiled down at them. “The reason I called you both down here was to tell you that I decided it would be a good idea for you to be partners throughout the year. You’re both extremely talented at brewing potions, and I believe that you would be capable of doing great things together.” 

Regulus and Florence stood silently, their eyes wide. Neither of them spoke immediately.

After a moment of silence, Regulus finally said, “I would rather work alone, Professor,” he glanced at Florence out of the corner of his eye. “I work better that way.” 

Slughorn’s face morphed into a frown as he tried to respond to Regulus’ refusal. Florence collected herself from her initial shock, as she saw an opportunity arise. 

“I actually think that’s a great idea, Professor.” she said, giving him a soft smile. This way, she could keep a close eye on him for Sirius. 

“Splendid!” Slughorn clapped his hands together, completely disregarding Regulus’ complaint. “You two can take the desk next to the ingredients cabinet. I’m so happy you are willing to work together! I think this will be a very good opportunity for the both of you.” 

Florence glanced over at Regulus to see that he was already looking at her. His eyebrows were furrowed in a mix of confusion, shock, and anger. He turned to Slughorn. 

“But, sir, I-” 

“Oh nonsense! I know you always complain how your partners don’t work as well as you do, Mr. Black, but I assure you that Miss Moreau is a very talented witch,” Slughorn waved his hands and walked around from behind his desk. “Now, I need to go fetch some things for today's class. You two can stay here and have a little chat before class starts.” and with that, he exited the room, leaving Florence and Regulus alone in the potions classroom. 

The room was silent. Though Florence could feel Regulus’ stare burn into the side of her face, she did not dare move. She was quickly regretting agreeing to being his partner, after all she had promised many people that she would avoid people like him. Florence was waiting for Regulus to say something, to yell at her for accepting Slughorn’s not-so-optional suggestion, but he didn’t say a word. Regulus stood up abruptly and walked over to their assigned desk. 

Before she could say anything, students started to enter the classroom. Everyone was talking, catching up about how their summers had been, but Florence was completely silent. She took a moment to take a deep breath before she stood up and walked slowly to their desk. Professor Slughorn walked in carrying what seemed to be an Alihotsy plant. 

“Welcome to Advanced Potions!” said Slughorn with a cheerful voice. “I must say, this seems like a very promising class” he said, glancing towards Regulus and Florence and giving them a wink. 

“Since today is our first class of the year, I thought we should start with something fun! Alihotsy Draught!” he said, rather excited at the idea. “Can anybody tell me the Effect of said potion?” 

Florence raised her hand right away, “It causes uncontrollable laughter to anyone who consumes it.”

“Very well! And do you know the physical appearance of it?”

“It has a blue colour and flumes.”

“Exactly! 5 points to Gryffindor!” Next to Florence, Regulus sighed in annoyance and leaned back into his chair. 

Students chattered with their partners, looking forward to the assignment. Any other day, Florence would be excited to brew, but now she only felt nerves. She had always worked well with her partners. Though she usually ended up doing the work herself, she didn’t mind. Florence took pride in her potion making. It was by far her best subject, and she greatly enjoyed doing it. She didn’t know Regulus well outside of what Sirius had told her, but she hoped that Regulus would share the same passion that she did so that their time together would be bearable. 

She glanced over at Regulus. He looked as though he was sitting as far away from her as he possibly could with an uncomfortable expression on his face. Florence, not wanting to waste anymore time, decided it was best to start working. She opened her textbook to find the instructions, glanced over the ingredients list, and stood up to retrieve them. 

All the ingredients they needed were in the pantry except for the Alihotsy plant that was on Slughorn’s desk in the front of the class. She turned back to her desk, arms full with the ingredients, and placed them on the table. She began walking towards Slughorn’s desk when she heard his voice. 

“I already grabbed it,” Regulus said without looking up from the textbook. Florence stopped moving and gave him a confused look, “The Alihotsy. I plucked its leaves too.” he said nonchalantly. 

“Oh, thank you,” A small smile formed on Florence's lips. Maybe they would work well together after all. “Do you want to cut the bloom berries and I can prepare the billywig wings?” He didn’t look at her, but instead grabbed the berries and a cutting board. 

Florence began by pouring springwater into the cauldron and starting a flame under it. She prepared the billywig wings by placing them in a pestle and mortar and crushing them. She looked up to see how Regulus was doing when she noticed something. 

“It’s actually better if you slice it, rather than crush it. You lose less of the juices that coat the puffskein hair.” she exclaimed. Regulus furrowed his brows and glanced over the textbook again. 

“The instructions say to crush it”

“Yes, I know, but it works better if you slice it. Trust me.” she said as she added the ground up wings to the cauldron. 

“I think I trust the textbook over the word of a student.” 

“I’ve brewed this potion before. Many times, actually.”

“Of course you have.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” asked Florence, who was getting annoyed at his attitude. 

“Helping with pranks? You know, you always did follow those boys around like a lost dog.” He looked over at her and crushed the berry. Florence let out a sigh. She reminded herself to stay calm before saying, 

“Fine, do whatever. But if we fail, it’s on you.”

The pair continued working in silence, Florence finished preparing the rest of the ingredients while Regulus stirred the cauldron. It was beginning to take a blue colour. Florence added the remaining ingredients and stepped back. She looked at how Regulus was stirring, opened her mouth as if to say something, but closed it quickly. 

“What?” said a very annoyed Regulus.

“You need to stir it counter-clockwise three consecutive times and once clockwise. I know it doesn’t say that in the textbook but-”

“Let me guess, it works better?” he said, his voice laced with sarcasm. She nodded in response. “Of course it does. The recipe that was made by the smartest wizards to exist and has been done the same way for hundreds of years, has had the wrong instructions all along. But little Florence here solved it.” 

“I’m not saying that, all I'm saying is it’s much more efficient,” she sighed, and shook her head. “You don't want to stir? Fine, I’ll do it,” she said, taking the ladle from his hand. 

Florence nudged him aside of the cauldron and began stirring. Regulus, shocked by her boldness, stared at her in disbelief. He crossed his arms and stepped back. Florence followed her own advice, and the blue color of the potion became more vibrant and flumes began bubbling off the top, leaving a sweet smell in the air. When she felt that the potion was satisfactory, she unignited the flame under the cauldron. She raised her hand, signaling to Slughorn that they were done. Professor Slughorn walked towards their desk, and Florence moved to the side and allowed the professor to peer into the cauldron. 

“Excellent! Very good execution, and great job with the stirring, Florence! I knew you two would make a great team,” he said with a smile. He turned around to face the rest of the classroom and announced, “It appears we have a winner. Right in time too. Class dismissed!” 

Students began packing their things and going to their next class. Florence couldn’t help the smirk that rose on her lips as she glanced over at Regulus. He rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath. 

The smile had left her face. “What did you just say?” 

“I said, guess being a kiss arse has its benefits” he said louder, looking over at her. Florence was shocked, that not being what she had expected him to say at all. Seeing her reaction, he continued.

“I mean, that's the only reason he likes you, right? You’ve been sucking him off since 4th year?” he scoffed and shook his head. 

“You do know that some of us happen to be good at potions, right? Or is that too hard of a concept for your simple brain to comprehend?” Florence shot back. She was absolutely livid, having never felt more disrespected. “Besides, you really think you’d be here if you weren’t a Black?” 

“Don’t talk about what you don’t understand.”

“What?” scoffed Florence, “you really think Sirius never told us what Mummy and Daddy did? I can’t believe he ever thought you could be any different from them.” Her voice was rising in volume as she became more and more angry. Regulus was shocked.

“You should learn how to keep your mouth shut. It’s clear you’ve been around Potter for too long,” he shook his head. “My brother always had an awful taste in friends. A blood traitor, a mutt, and a filthy mudblood,” he spat. 

Florence had been called a mudblood too many times to count. She was not unfamiliar with the term being thrown around at Hogwarts, seeing as many students who were followers of You-Know-Who used it often to taunt muggleborns. Many of which Florence knew to be friends with Regulus, but hearing it come out of his mouth was still surprising. Regulus had never called her that before, at least not to her face. She could tolerate being called a mudblood, but she would never let anybody degrade her friends the way he did. 

“Sirius is more a man than you could ever be. Besides, maybe you should take a look at who your friends are before you go and talk shit about mine.” 

At this, Regulus got closer to Florence and lowered his lips next to her ear and spoke with a voice that was barely above a whisper but firm, “My friends? I’m sure they’d love to meet you.” He stepped away and spoke louder, “Maybe you can invite the ginger one too.”

Before Florence could stop herself and think rationally, her arm raised, about to strike Regulus’ face. He flinched. The arrogant expression on his face dropped, and for a second the only thing she could see in his eyes was fear. Before her hand made any movement, she stopped herself. 

They stared into each other's eyes for what felt like the longest minute of her life. He knew he had accidentally let her know too much. After a moment of silence, he spoke. His voice was quiet, but held all the intensity it needed to. 

“If I were you, I’d keep my head low. Learn how to respect those above you. You’ll regret it if you don’t.” 

Florence realized what she had done. She had effectively pissed off, not only a pureblood, but a boy whose family had direct connections to he-who-must-not-be-named. She wanted nothing more to do with this conversation, knowing that it might cost her and her friends’ safety. She shoved her textbook and parchments into her bag, slung it over her shoulder, and left the classroom without another word. Her heart was beating in her eardrums and her breath was becoming quicker as she sped towards the greenhouse for her next class. She had to find Dorcas.

If there was one thing Sirius had made clear, it was that you did not want to mess with his family. The history of the Black family was not a pleasant one. As one of the Sacred 28, they’re obsessed with three things: image, blood purity, and power, which they’ll stop at nothing to achieve. Defying these means, especially in a time of struggle between these extremists and muggleborns, was extremely dangerous. While Walburga and Orion Black weren’t confirmed death eaters, they had close ties with many people who are. Sirius had told his friends all about the meetings that took place at his house and all the awful things he would hear. Before Florence left for Hogwarts, the advice her friends had left her with was “stay out of trouble.” Upsetting Regulus Black was everything Florence was supposed to avoid. 

  
  
_Shit._


	5. Avoidance

_ Shit. Shit. Shit. This is NOT fucking good. _

Florence was late to Herbology. She arrived at the greenhouse and hurried inside. Her eyes frantically scanned everyone's faces, looking for Dorcas, and when she spotted her, she ran over.

“Where were you? I thought your meeting with Slughorn was before class?” Dorcas whispered to Florence as she arrived at her side. “Why are you out of breath?” 

“Dorcas, I messed up. Big time. I don’t know what to do.” Florence managed to get out between breaths. Her mind was racing as she tried to collect herself and her thoughts. Before she could tell Dorcas any more, she was interrupted. 

“Ladies, no chatter, please!” Professor Sprout scolded. 

“Okay, calm down. We’ll talk after class.” Dorcas assured. Florence only nodded and tried to catch her breath. 

Herbology lasted for what felt like a lifetime. Florence tried to speak with Dorcas multiple times, but was unsuccessful. After a few more attempts she decided it would be best to pay attention to what Professor Sprout was saying. Thankfully they had Defense Against the Dark Arts together next period, so they’d be able to talk as soon as Herbology was over. When class was dismissed and the girls had packed up, Florence grabbed Dorcas’ hand and led her into the castle. On their way to their next class, they ducked down an empty hallway to talk in private.

“Are you okay? What happened?” Dorcas’ voice was filled with worry. “Did Slughorn do something?” 

“Yes. Well, kind of.” Florence took a deep breath, and began recounting her morning to Dorcas, from Slughorn partnering her and Regulus together to their argument, “... you should’ve heard the things he said to me. He was being so rude, and I couldn’t just let him get away with it! But I really, really should’ve just kept my mouth shut. Dorcas, I’m screwed.” 

“Florence, it's your first day here! Literally all you had to do was stay out of trouble!” Dorcas exclaimed, raising her voice. “Do you have any idea of what this could mean for you?”

“Of course I do! Don’t you think I’ve already thought about that?”

“We have to owl Lily right now, she’ll know what to do. In the meantime, go talk to Slughorn and tell him you need to switch classes.”

Florence stopped moving. There was no way she was going to tell Lily. Lily would tell James, and James would tell Sirius, and then Sirius would be furious. Their friends had enough to worry about as it is, and she was not going to add herself to that list.

“Woah, hold on. I’m not going to do any of those things.” Florence’s voice was firm and her expression was serious. “I’m not switching out of potions because Regulus was mean to me. And I’m definitely not gonna owl Lily, and neither are you. She already has enough on her plate.”

“Florence, we have to tell them,” Dorcas insisted, “You promised them that you’d be safe. I don’t want anything to happen to you that they could potentially prevent!” 

“There’s nothing to prevent!” Dorcas raised her eyebrows at Florence’s attempt to reassure her. “I swear. I was just being dramatic, okay? Regulus was being a git because I agreed to being his partner when he wanted to work alone. He said some mean things, and I did too, but that's it.”

“Florence, don’t downplay what just happened because you don’t want anyone to worry-”

“I’m not! I promise,” Florence sighed and shook her head. “He said something about Lily and it got under my skin, so I got worked up. He just gave me an empty threat, that’s all.” Dorcas gave her a questioning look. She still wasn’t convinced. Florence continued. 

“Look, I can handle this. Just don’t tell the others, please? I don’t want them to worry about something that they don’t need to. If anything happens, I promise I will tell you right away and we can owl whoever you want. Just trust me.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yes.”

“You’re not just saying this to keep me from owling Lily?”

“I’m not.” She was lying. Dorcas sighed, then nodded. 

“Okay. I believe you. But if Regulus does so much as to look at you the wrong way, tell me right immediately. I don’t want anything to happen to you.” 

“I will. Thank you, Dorcas,” Florence said, wrapping her arms around her for a quick hug. “Now c'mon we’re gonna be late for class.” 

Defense Against the Dark Arts had always been one of Florence’s favorite classes. She did well with the academic side of it, like reading about creatures and studying various curses and spells, but always lacked in the dueling area. Florence wasn’t particularly bad at dueling, she just hesitated before each move she made. She had practiced all summer with the boys, but she had only improved a small bit. The class this year was taught by Professor Bale. He had only started teaching at Hogwarts during her 6th year, but he quickly became one of her favorite Professors. Though he had taught at Hogwarts before, this would be his first time in this position. Florence was thrilled that he was given the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. He was an excellent teacher and was very open about his views on the war, which made him all the more likable. He became a student-favorite soon after joining the Hogwarts staff.

When Dorcas and Florence walked into the classroom, they noticed Charlotte had saved them both seats. 

“What took you guys so long? Didn't you just come from Herbology?” Charlotte asked the girls as they sat down and placed their things on their desk. Florence gave Dorcas a quick glance out of the corner of her eye, not knowing how to respond. 

“We ran into Edward and stopped to catch up, but we lost track of time.” Dorcas lied seamlessly. 

“Let’s wait a little bit to start class, since some students are still arriving. I’ll play some music in the meanwhile,” said Professor Bale. As more students arrived, the classroom filled with the sounds of chattering students and laughs. Florence was talking with Charlotte when she heard Regulus' voice. She looked up and saw him speaking to Bale. Her heart dropped and she could feel her hands start to sweat. She wished she could tell Dorcas how she was feeling. She wanted to hear some comforting words, but if she showed a slight amount of worry to Dorcas, Florence knew that she would freak out and owl James, who would be by her side the moment he found out. She needed to avoid being an inconvenience to the others, so all she could do was sit and act indifferent. 

“I’m sorry for being late, it won’t happen again. I just had to pick something up from my dorm.” Regulus’ voice was much softer than it had been last time she heard him speak. 

“Don’t worry about it. Just take your seat,” Bale said kindly. 

Regulus was walking towards the back of the class when he saw Florence. He glanced over at her, and she immediately averted her eyes and pretended as if she weren’t just staring at him. After another moment of waiting, Professor Bale stood in front of the room and smiled down at the students.

“Hello, class! Welcome to Defense Against The Dark arts.” Professor Bale spoke to the class. “Since today is our first day back, I thought we should take it easy, so we’re just going to introduce ourselves and go over the syllabus.” 

Florence could feel Regulus’ eyes on the back of her head. She tried not to look, but the anxiety of having eyes on her got the best of her. She subtly glanced over at the table where he sat. Regulus was writing on a piece of parchment, not paying attention to anything else that was happening in the classroom. Florence knew he was known for having a talent for the dark arts, he probably could do hundreds of curses that she hadn’t even heard of. He was sitting next to Xavier Dawn, a chaser on the Slytherin Quidditch team. Xavier was the only Slytherin Florence was friendly with. He was also one of the few people Regulus seemed to tolerate. Even though she liked him, Florence was not sure what his beliefs were relating to blood status. The one thing that she knew for sure was that if they were to attack her, she had no chance.

“I want you to go around the room and tell me your name and one thing you are passionate about.” Professor Bale said. Florence tried to return her attention to the front of the class as students began introducing themselves but she couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that she felt from being observed. Most students had rather generic answers, such as Quidditch or reading. When it was Florence's turn, she introduced herself and stated her passion for potion making. 

“Oh yes. Professor Slughorn mentioned how you always exceed in his class!” Professor Bale commented. Though she wasn’t looking at him, Florence just knew that Bale’s comment annoyed Regulus. Regardless, she smiled at Bale. The attention was off her pretty quickly, the rest of the students introduced themselves and afterwards Bale began talking about the term’s expectations. Throughout the whole class she could feel Regulus’ stare burn the back of her neck. Her hands were sweaty and her heart was beating fast. Florence tried to remain as physically calm as she could, the less Dorcas suspected the better.

D.A.D.A had been a very short class, seeing as Professor Bale allowed his students to leave early for lunch. The three Gryffindor girls made their way to the Great Hall. They were walking and chatting amongst themselves when Edward Porter approached them. They noticed a small red pin attached to his robes. 

“The new Gryffindor team captain! Congrats, mate,” Charlotte told him, clapping her hand on his arm and giving him a smile. 

“Thanks, Green. I’m glad I ran into you guys. We’re holding Quidditch tryouts this saturday to fill the positions of the players we lost. The whole team has to be there.” 

“It’s gonna be hard to find someone to replace James and Marlene,” said Charlotte thoughtfully, “I guess Paige could be a good chaser.”

“Yeah we’ll see at tryouts, but I have high hopes for this year. I need you two to be there early. Every minute you’re late, I’ll make you run a lap around the pitch.”

“Oooh, scary,” Charlotte giggled at Edward. 

“You’ve just started and you’re already bossing us around?” Florence teased him. “We’ll be there. I’m so glad you’re captain, you’ll do a great job.”

“Thanks, Florence,” he smiled at her sweetly. “I have to go but I’ll see you around, okay?” Edward gave them a smile and walked away. Once he was out of ear shot, Charlotte turned towards the two girls.

“When did he become cute?” 

It was true, Edward had grown a few inches and his face was more mature. His dirty blond hair had grown a bit over the summer and he clearly had spent most of his time training for Quidditch. Charlotte continued. 

“Is it just me, or have all of the boys in our year become attractive all of a sudden?” 

“It's just you,” Dorcas said, crossing her arms and smiling. Florence snorted and gave her a shove.

“No, I'm being serious! Just think about it. Edward, Ben, Sebastian, Xavier. And did you see Regulus?” At that suggestion, Florence tensed up. “He couldn’t stop looking at you all class, Florence,” Charlotte teased. Dorcas scoffed. Florence knew the real reason Regulus had been staring at her, and it was far from attraction. 

“That bloke? No way, he’s a Slytherin!” said Dorcas, in an attempt to end the conversation about the boy. 

“You have to admit he’s attractive. A decent Quidditch player too.” insisted Charlotte. She turned towards Florence, “Don’t you think?”

“He’s not bad, I guess,” Florence said. She wasn’t lying. Regulus was a very good Quidditch player, he had been seeker since his 4th year. And she didn't think that he was particularly ugly, but he was Sirius’ brother and, not to mention a total prick, so it was hard to see him as attractive. Before she could stop herself, Florence looked over at the Slytherin table. Charlotte gasped. 

“You totally like him!” Charlotte exclaimed. “You know, I’m glad you like someone. I always thought you had a crush on James.” Florence and Dorcas gasped. Dorcas began laughing hysterically as Florence made a gagging sound. 

“No! No absolutely not! He’s like my brother! That’s disgusting!” she cried, covering her eyes with her hands and shaking her head. The girls laughed. Florence collected herself and looked up at Charlotte. “And I'm not into Regulus either. He’s one of those blood-purity obsessed freaks. I’m a “mudblood,” remember?” 

This made Charlotte uncomfortable. Charlotte came from a rich pure-blood family. Obviously she was against Voldemort, but she did not like discussing what was happening with the war or the things muggleborns went through.

“Right, I forgot about that.”

“Lucky,” Florence muttered under her breath. 

Dorcas gave Florence a look. They knew that the only thing that could come out of this conversation was a fight, so they mutually decided it would be best to change the subject. Charlotte excused herself a few minutes before lunch ended to get to her class early, which left Dorcas and Florence alone. They compared their schedules, to find they only shared one more class together. Dorcas sighed. She was upset that she wasn’t able to spend more time with Florence.

“If you have any other classes with him, please just ignore him. It won’t help to fuel the fire anymore.” Dorcas’ voice was serious as she took Florence's hand in hers. Florence sighed and was about to respond, when Dorcas continued, “I just want you to be safe.” 

“Thank you Dorcas, really, but I've got it handled. Don't worry.” She gave Dorcas a reassuring smile and gave her hand a squeeze. 

The rest of Florence’s day went relatively quickly, seeing as she only had two classes after lunch before Astronomy at night. Florence was already in the common room, drafting out letters to send to her friends when Dorcas walked in.

“How was sixth hour?” Florence asked when she noticed the other girl. Because of Astronomy being at night, the students taking it were given the 6th hour off so that they would have time for their work. 

“It was okay,” Dorcas’ voice sounded very tired. “I really should've taken history last year and Astronomy this year.”

“You should have. Now I’ll be all alone,” she groaned. “I don’t know a thing about stars!” 

Dorcas rolled her eyes and said, “you complain now, but watch as you ace the class like you always do. Besides, I would take stars over Binns' voice any day. Anyways, enough about classes. Who are you writing to?” She layed on the couch next to Florence. 

“I’m just writing a letter to send home, just to let them know we got here safe. I’m assuming they’re all still staying together,” Florence said while handing a blank paper to Dorcas. “You should write to Marlene. I’m sure she’ll want to hear from you.” 

“Good idea,” Dorcas sat up and grabbed a book to lean her letter on. “It’s so weird being here without her. It’s not like we had classes together, but I missed her today.” 

“Yeah me too. It just seems so empty without everyone here. Lunch felt so quiet without Lily and James bickering the whole time,” Florence joked. 

“Oh Merlin,” Dorcas groaned. “I am glad to be away from those two at mealtime. They acted like a married couple even before they were together.” They both laughed. 

“And then with Sirius and Remus being awkward with each other half of the year,” Dorcas said. 

“Oh c’mon, give them some slack. Not everyone is upfront with their feelings. You and Marlene took like three days to decide you were gonna date and get married.” 

“We did not! And besides, she asked me out. That's all her.”

“Yeah, well you accepted. And might I add, you spent most of break with her.”

Dorcas blushed at the memories from her summer. She shook her head and grumbled, “Just shut up and write your letters.”

After they had finished up their notes, the girls went to the owlery to send them off. Florence and Dorcas sent a brief joint letter to their friends. 

_ Everyone,  _

_ We arrived safely at Hogwarts! The ride here was okay, thank you for the snacks, they really helped. We already set the flowers in our dorm and they look lovely. The school is pretty empty, not many parents sent their kids this year. Don’t worry, we’re taking care and staying out of trouble. Stay safe.  _

_ Lots of love, _

_ Dorcas and Florence _

“I’m starving. We should go find Charlotte and head out to the great hall,” Florence said. One of the things Florence loved the most about Hogwarts was the food. Florence and Dorcas, after sending off their letters, walked to the great hall and joined Charlotte and Edward at the Gryffindor table. Students at every table chattered enthusiastically, telling their friends about their first day of classes. That night’s feast was just as spectacular as the night before. Soon enough, Florence had to leave to fetch her things for astronomy from her dorm. 

Astronomy was known for being one of the most entertaining classes Hogwarts had. It was only three times a week, after dinner, and it was mostly fun projects. This meant most students took it in their sixth year, unwisely saving History of Magic for their seventh. This was one of the reasons she didn’t know anyone who was taking the class with her. 

Florence arrived at the astronomy tower and was almost to the top when she could hear Professor Sinistra speaking. She had a sweet voice. Professor Sinistra had been teaching at Hogwarts for many years, she was known for being nice but firm when she needed to, she always made her classes fun. 

“That’s very interesting. I don’t think I’ve met a student with such knowledge on individual stars.” 

“Stars are a huge deal in my family. But I am pretty interested in them,” Florence froze. That voice belonged to Regulus. She needed to get out of there as soon as possible. She turned around to leave when she ran into two students who had just arrived behind her. 

“Wonderful! More students! I believe we’re only expecting two more,” Professor Sinistra spoke. Regulus looked up. His eyes met Florence’s but she averted them right away. 

Florence could feel her heartbeat getting faster. It was too late for her to leave now. She glanced around the room. Only the teacher, Regulus, and the two other students who arrived with her were there, which meant that, with the addition of two more, there would only be 6 students in the class. There was no one she could rely on either; she was in a room filled with strangers and someone who hated her. She decided her best shot was to avoid eye contact and stay near Sinistra. It had taken a few minutes until the remaining students arrived. 

“Perfect! We’ll start right away!” Sinistra clapped her hands in something. “So to start, I want you lot to tell me your name and how much you know about astronomy. If you don’t know anything, that's okay, just let me know.”

Regulus had been the first to introduce himself, then Lucia and Thomas-both Ravenclaws, Simon and Benjamin from Hufflepuff, and finally it was Florence’s turn. She hadn’t been paying attention, having been too wrapped up in her own thoughts. 

“Oh, um, I’m Florence,” she said dumbly, unable to find any better words to say. “Right, sorry. I wouldn’t say I’m very knowledgeable on stars, but I’m a fast learner.”

“Great! Well since it’s our first day, we’re just going to stargaze and mess with the telescopes to get a feel of how to use them.” The professor said, “You guys are free to choose partners or work alone. I don’t mind as long as you’re actually working.”

They all walked over to telescopes, each of them pairing up with their housemate, except for Regulus who was working alone. Florence stayed in the same spot, trying to collect herself and figure out what would be her best option out of here. Sinistra was standing alone, and she saw this as an opportunity. 

“Professor?” Florence asked as she walked towards Sinistra. 

“Yes?”

“I was wondering if I could be excused for the rest of the class. You see, I have an awful migraine, and I think it would be best if I just went back to my dorm and slept”

“Would you like to go to Madame Pomfrey in the Hospital wing? I’m sure she has a remedy for migraines.” 

“Oh no, that won’t be necessary..”

“Then I believe it's best if you stay. I’m sorry, but since it's already so late, I’ve been instructed by Dumbledore to keep my students from wandering the halls.” Sinistra said, giving her a sympathetic smile and putting her hand on her shoulder. 

“I understand,” it was true, it made total sense for students not to be allowed to wander the halls, especially at night. She obviously couldn't explain to her professor that the discomfort she was feeling wasn’t from her migraine, but from the fear that one of her classmates might kill her. So the only thing she could do was nod and assume her position at one of the telescopes. 

Florence had been too busy with her thoughts when professor Sinistra had explained how to use the telescope correctly. Leaving her lost and confused about what she was supposed to do, she thought about asking for help but decided against it when she saw the professor speaking with other students. Florence did not like asking for help, even when she was desperate. She always preferred resolving her issues on her own. 

As class came to an end, Florence was flooded with relief. She had spent all of the class period pretending to be working on finding specific constellations, while in reality, she was just making sure Regulus was far away. The moment she was dismissed she grabbed her things and rushed to Gryffindor’s common room.

The common room was much emptier than it usually was this time at night; There were two third years playing chess and a group of sixth years talking amongst themselves. Florence figured her friends had gone to sleep, and decided it would be best to go to her dorm. When she opened the door, she saw her roommates were fast asleep. It had been a tough day for most seventh years. Even though she was tired and in need of sleep, Florence knew there was no way she was going to be able to rest anytime soon. She knew she couldn’t tell anyone what had really happened between her and Regulus, and that worried her. With a million thoughts racing through her head, she instead decided to grab a book and read until she could no longer keep her eyes open.


	6. The Regerminating Potion

Florence had barely gotten any sleep that night. The rest of the week had gone similar to how astronomy had been: she avoided eye contact with Regulus and made sure she was near the professor at all times. She had tried to hint at Slughorn that she and Regulus could not work well together, but Slughorn, in his blissful ignorance, just told her to give it some time and that hopefully they would get to know each other better. So, Florence just had to push through it. Thankfully, her other classes had been relatively easy since the year was just starting, so most of them had been introductory lessons. All except for Transfigurations, seeing as McGonagall had assigned a three-page essay on cross-species transfiguration due on Tuesday. Dorcas and Florence had decided to do their essay over the weekend, rather than leave it till Monday night like they usually would have. They had decided that they should at least attempt to get a head start on their work while they had the chance. Quidditch tryouts occurred on Saturday which made Florence’s first weekend at Hogwarts rather busy. 

Florence was in a much better mood that next Monday. The Quidditch tryouts had been successful in finding new players: Sophia Paige and Charles Bowman filled in two chaser positions, and Perseus Doyle was appointed the new beater. Edward had decided that to get back into the groove of playing, it would be a good idea to play a game on Sunday as team bonding. Florence had forgotten how much she loved playing Quidditch, and it helped to let out some of the stress that she had been holding. 

Charlotte had woken up early to work on an assignment with some other students, so it was just Dorcas and Florence left in their dorm. Because she was in such a good mood, Florence had decided she would put some effort into her appearance. She took some time putting on makeup and she asked Dorcas to put her hair in braids.

“What’s going on, Florence? Getting dressed up for someone?” Dorcas teased while she finished doing her makeup. Florence groaned. 

“No, I’m just in a good mood. Is there a problem with wanting to look cute?” Florence said with a shrug. “I’ve been such a mess all week because of Regulus, and I’m sick of it. So, I decided that today is going to be a good day.”

“Good idea. You deserve it. Don’t let some git ruin your last year here.” 

“That’s the plan,” Florence said, giving her a smile. 

Florence and Dorcas made their way to the great hall for breakfast. They sat near the Quidditch team, who appeared to be in a much better mood. They were talking about this season’s plan for the quidditch team when an owl flew by Florence and dropped a letter in front of her. 

“Who’s it from?” asked Dorcas as Florence grabbed the letter.

“Sirius.”

_ Dear Florence, _

_ I’m sorry I haven’t been able to owl you until now. I hope you’ve been having a good time. Effie told me Quidditch season is coming up soon. You better win every game you play! We’ve just heard from the chess club yesterday, so I won't be able to owl for a few weeks. Once I’m back, I’ll write to you as soon as possible. James says to  _ _ be careful and win the quidditch cup.  _ _ Remus says hi. We miss you.  _

_ Lots of love, _

_ Padfoot  _

Florence chuckled at Sirius’ use of “chess club.” The members of the Order had been instructed by Dumbledore to only discuss the group in person and when you were certain that no one would be around to listen. Because of that, Sirius had come up with multiple code names to refer to the Order with. Her smile had been quickly replaced by a frown, Sirius had probably been given a mission. To be able to join the order you had to be of age, Dumbledore would have to invite you, and you have to have finished with school. This was a rule put specifically for Dorcas and Florence. Because they were not officially part of the Order of the Phoenix, they were not allowed to know anything about the mission's members were sent to or what happened in meetings. However, Florence was asked occasionally to brew complicated potions for them if others were unable to. 

“What did he say?” asked an impatient Dorcas. 

“He’s going on a trip with the chess club,” Dorcas knew right away what she meant.

“Does he say for how long?”

“No, only that he won’t be able to answer next week.” Florence noticed that Dorcas was holding a letter in her hands, she must have received it while Florence was reading Sirius’ letter. “Who owled you?”

“It’s from my Dad. He was just writing to me before he went on the trip to France,” she had emphasized on the word trip. Just like their friends, Dorcas’ parents had joined the Order. They had been going on trips to different countries trying to get more people who would fight against you-know-who in case the war came to worse.

“He will be okay. They all will. I’m sure,” Florence said trying to take away some worry Dorcas had. “Did he say how long the trip was?”

“No, but I’m sure it will be a few weeks at least.” Florence hummed in agreement. Not many of the “trips” the members of the order took were less than a week.

“We should probably answer before breakfast ends and we have to go to class,” Dorcas said while she grabbed some parchment and passed it to Florence. They both took out their quills and began writing. 

_ Dear Sirius, _

_ I’m so glad to hear from you! And yes, Quidditch starts very soon. We have a game against Hufflepuff in a bit over 2 weeks. The new players are pretty good, I think we have a good chance to win the cup this year. I hope your chess trip goes well, remember to be very careful and stay safe. Let me know as soon as you return. Tell James and Remus I say hi and send my love. I miss you guys. _

_ With love, _

_ Florence _

Before she could stop herself, she added:

_ P.S: He got taller. _

Florence and Dorcas walked to the owlery to send their letters. They didn’t have much time left before class started, so they decided it would be best to part ways after sending off their owls.

“I’ll see you in Herbology! And remember, don’t let him get to you!” Dorcas yelled back at Florence as she rushed through a hall to her class. Florence made her way to the dungeons and into the potions classroom.

When she arrived at potions she went straight to her shared table with Regulus, who was already seated and looking into his textbook. He was reading what she assumed was the instructions of the potion they were going to be brewing today in class. The potion they had been assigned to brew this week was  Regerminating Potion. It was a difficult potion to brew and it took about 2 weeks to complete. Florence decided she would read over the instructions and would fetch the ingredients they needed for today.

Florence could not stop replaying everything that had happened during her first day back in Hogwarts. She would think of every way she could’ve avoided her argument with Regulus, but more importantly, she couldn’t stop thinking about Regulus’ reaction when she had raised her hand. He had always seemed collected and held an arrogant look in his eyes, but the moment he flinched Florence saw the truth. Knowing what Sirius had told her about their parents, she couldn’t even imagine the things they did to Regulus.

Over the last week, Regulus and Florence had barely spoken. Florence had done her best to stay as far away from him as possible.  Potions had been the hardest, obviously not being able to completely avoid him, but she just kept her mouth shut and did her work. If it were any other person, she would simply take over and do all the work. But Regulus seemed to be keen on working on potions, he just wasn’t interested in acknowledging Florence’s existence. A week ago that would’ve been good to know, seeing as their argument had led to their working in silence, but there was no way to successfully brew a potion if you didn’t talk with your partner. Florence learned this quickly, seeing as the potions that she and her partner had produced over the week had not been satisfactory.

During potions they would work in silence, barely acknowledging each other’s existence and, even though they were both talented brewers, the potions they had brewed throughout the week had only been slightly above average. This bothered Florence greatly, but she refused to be the first to break the silence. So until he apologized, she would ignore and avoid him.

She regretted bringing up Regulus’ family, after all, she was aware of how awful the black family was to their sons. She was sure he was no exception to that. But Regulus had said some scary things to her. It was no secret that his family was friendly with You-Know-Who, and even though Sirius could swear that Regulus wasn’t like his family, his threat had terrified her. Regulus wasn’t lying when he said his ‘friends’ would enjoy meeting Florence and Lily, many muggleborns were disappearing or being murdered by death eaters. 

“Good morning class!” Slughorn’s cheerful voice interrupted her thoughts. “This week we are beginning to brew more complicated potions. I expect all of you to behave and not waste time fooling around. Regerminating Potion requires consistent attention and care, so be very careful when brewing. I also am assigning a four-page essay on the potion’s instructions, origin, and purpose, so make sure to pay close attention. You or your partner should check on it daily to make sure that the process is going smoothly.”

This made Florence groan internally. There was no way that she and Regulus would be able to agree on who would check on their potion, so she would have to figure out a way to fit coming to the potions classroom everyday between classwork and Quidditch practice all by herself. 

Once Professor Slughorn had finished speaking to the class, Florence stood up to bring the materials they needed. When she returned, she set the ingredients on the table and began preparing the  Blatta Pulvereus . She avoided looking at Regulus, focusing on whatever she’s doing. She heard his chair pull back so Florence assumed he had started working on their potion.

The preparation was much harder than Florence had expected. She had never done a similar potion, and it didn’t help that her partner was ignoring her. After she decided she was satisfied with how smooth the  Blatta Pulvereus was,  she poured it in the cauldron and began preparing the Ashwinder Bile. She looked up to see Regulus pouring the Lethe River Water into the cauldron and stirring it slowly. 

The final result of the potion, which would hopefully take place by the end of next week, should have a dark green colour, but today according to the instructions it was supposed to be a sage-like color. Florence was confused when their potion was turning out to be a yellow-y tone instead of green. She wanted to discuss what they were doing wrong with Regulus, but a mixture of both pride and fear stopped her from even looking at him. Against her better judgement, she decided to assume it was part of the potion’s process and continued with her work. 

As Florence and Regulus’s time was running out and the lesson came to an end, their potion had changed from yellow to a murky brown colour. Florence could tell that Regulus was just as frustrated with the potions as she was, but even then they refused to talk to each other, nor ask Slughorn for assistance. Instead, they both stubbornly ignored each other and continued individually. Regulus kept reading over the instructions and checking on the potion, meanwhile Florence kept adding more knotgrass in hopes of turning the potion greener. 

Most of the other groups were setting their potions on their designated spot to let them sit overnight. Just as Florence was about to break the silence with Regulus so that she could be sure he did the steps correctly, a loud and rumbling noise came from their cauldron. 

“What did you do?” Florence said, immediately looking up at Regulus who was standing near their potions.

This made Regulus scowl, “I didn't do anything. What did you do?” 

“Nothing. I went to put away the extra Ashwinder Bile that I had left over, and when I came back our potion was that color,” she said, pointing at the dark brown substance in their cauldron.

“What  _ you _ had left over?” Regulus’ eyebrows furrowed, “I was the one that was in charge of adding the Ashwinder Bile.” 

“No, you were supposed to add the river water and the fairy wings.” 

“When did we establish that?” 

“When I picked the ingredients! Maybe if you had actually payed attention-”

“Oh don’t even-”

While they had been bickering, Florence and Regulus failed to notice their concoction bubbling over the sides of the cauldron. The liquid was thick and slimy, which made for one large bubble to begin forming on the top. Before Regulus could finish his sentence, it popped. Dark brown ooze splattered out of the cauldron and onto Regulus and Florence. 

Florence was frozen on the spot. She could feel how the potion had gotten all over her hair and clothes. The potion thick, slimy, and smelled horrendous. She clamped her eyes shut and held her breath to stop herself from gagging. She heard Slughorn’s voice call out from behind her. 

“Oh, Merlin! What happened over here?” 

“We had a misunderstanding with who prepared which ingredient,” Regulus spoke before Florence, as he wiped the slime off of his eyes and looked around at the mess. Florence was grateful that Regulus had spoken first. She couldn’t trust her voice, for at that moment, she felt humiliated and ashamed. She opened her eyes to see Slughorn’s disappointed eyes peering around their sludge-covered station.

“I see. I expected better from you two. You should know how important it is to communicate with your partner. If not, accidents like this will occur.” He looked them up-and-down and sighed, “This better not repeat itself. 5 points from Gryffindor and 5 points from Slytherin. You both are dismissed to change, I will clean this myself.” 

Regulus and Florence nodded and quickly walked out of the classroom. In the hall Regulus was about to say something to Florence, but before he could open his mouth, Florence lifted her hand to stop him. 

“Please don’t.” 

She didn’t wait for a response. Instead, she just turned and made her way towards her dorm. Thankfully, neither Dorcas or Charlotte had first off so she had the dorm to herself. She washed her hair and put on pajamas. She decided it would be best to stay in her dorm for the rest of the day, Florence was sure she could still smell the potion in her hair. 

By the time third hour had finished and lunch had begun, Florence had read, taken a nap, and tried to do some research on Necromancy, but was unable to find any information in the unrestricted sections of the library. She had overheard Fleamont and James talking about it after a meeting with the Order and figured that she would look into it. Living with the Potters had oftentimes been as fun as she thought it would be, but it was also quite stressful and at times sad. Members of the Order would stop by the Potter’s almost every day at any hour, and since Florence wasn’t allowed to ask any questions, she would make sure to remember everything she overheard and do some research on it. 

She heard Dorcas and Charlotte chattering in the hallway, but they quieted as they entered the dorm. “Florence?” SaidSaid Dorcas. 

Florence was laying in her bed covered by blankets and surrounded by books. Dorcas went over and sat at the foot of Florence’s bed. “I took notes for you in defense. I also watered your mandrake.”

“Thank you,” Florence said.

“We heard what happened. Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I just had a rough morning,” Florence sighed and made more space on her bed for her roommate to sit. “Who told? I can't remember who else was in the classroom.” 

“I overheard Xavier talking about it with Crouch,” Charlotte spoke, sparing her any more details. She handed her a sandwich wrapped in a napkin, “I brought you something to eat. Figured you wouldn’t want to leave your bed just yet.”

“You’re a lifesaver,” Florence sighed in content as she took a bite off of her food.

“Edward wanted me to remind you we have practice today,” Charlotte said. Florence groaned and pulled her covers back over her head. Dorcas laughed at Florence’s reaction, but before she could say anything Charlotte spoke again, “It's the first official practice with this year’s team so you can’t miss it. His words, not mine.” 

Charlotte stood up from Florence’s bed and looked at the time, “Speaking of which, I should probably go. I was supposed to eat lunch with Edward.” She left the dorm, leaving Dorcas and Florence alone. 

“You probably shouldn’t miss the rest of your classes either. Cause if we depend on my notes for Transfiguration we might as well just give up now,” Dorcas joked while pulling the covers off of Florence, making her groan. 

“I don't want to.”

“You have to.” 

“I can’t.”

“Stop being dramatic.”

“You don’t understand. Bloody hell, If I can’t even do a simple potion, then what am I supposed to do? My whole reputation is ruined. I can never show my face again,” she whined, covering her face with her hands. Now Dorcas was groaning. 

“Florence, everyone messes up their potions sometimes. Now c'mon, get up.” 

“No.”

“Yes.”

“No.”

“I’m gonna owl James if you don’t.” This made Florence let out an exasperated gasp.

“What does he have to do with anything?” She sat up and looked at Dorcas, “Besides there’s nothing to tell!” 

Dorcas raised her eyebrows. Florence sighed. 

“Fine. But I’m not going to astronomy.” 

Florence changed back into uniform and collected the things she needed for the rest of her classes. She only planned on attending two more classes in the day, neither of which were with Regulus, so she wasn’t too worried. They made their way to Transfigurations in silence. 

Transfigurations ended up being terrible, but not for the reason that Florence thought it would be. Nobody even mentioned the potions incident from this morning, but Florence would have preferred they would’ve after hearing what the new conversation topic was. Another muggle family had been murdered, but this time, it was the family of a Hogwarts student, Damian Walker. It was the only thing people seemed to be talking about. Florence’s chest had tightened when she heard the news. Lately, the war had been taking a huge toll on her. She was angry and scared, and she hated how useless she felt. The incident in potions seemed so irrelevant now. 

She was working on revising her essay when Dorcas tapped her shoulder. 

“Muffliato,” she cast as she leaned over so that they could whisper. “Are you okay?”

“What? Yeah. I already told you. I was upset the potion didn’t work out, and I was just being hard on myself, don’t worry,” Florence assured.

“No, I mean with everything that happened with Damian?” Dorcas said softly. Florence knew what she was asking. 

“Oh, that,” she just sighed and nodded. “I’m okay.” 

The truth was that Florence was terrified, but she would never admit to that. All muggleborns were scared. Many had been cornered and “accidentally” hurt by some of the pureblood-obsessed students, and more families had been disappearing. Of course Hogwarts was safe, but only to a certain extent. 

“I can’t even imagine what it's like outside,” Dorcas said while biting her nails. “I should probably owl Marlene as soon as I can.”

“Good idea. I’ll owl Lily. Though I doubt there’s anything she can tell us.” Florence returned her attention to her essay. 

“Florence?”

“Yeah?”

“I know I tell you this all the time, but let’s be careful please.”

Florence looked up at Dorcas with sincere eyes. “Of course.” 

That was something everyone seemed to remind her of. Though Florence would just nod her head and agree, she was becoming sick of everyone’s worry about her. It wasn’t like Florence was a troublemaker, she simply had strong beliefs that usually led her to make some questionable decisions. But things were different now, and she was tired of people assuming she would purposely put anyone she cared for in harm just because of her temper. 

They didn’t speak for the rest of the class.  Dorcas seemed to be lost in thought and Florence was too tired to strike up a conversation, so they just worked in silence. Florence was grateful the rest of the lesson went by pretty quickly. She enjoyed transfigurations but today had turned out to be a harder day than what she had hoped for. She just wanted to be done with her classes. 

Once they were dismissed, everyone picked up their things and began leaving the room. Most students were still talking about the Walkers. Florence kept her head low while she walked next to Dorcas, her head racing with thoughts about Damian and how he must feel. Her thoughts were interrupted when something poked her in the cheek.

She looked up and saw a paper folded as a crane enchanted to fly around her. Florence her hand out to grab the paper crane but it flew gently into her palm. 

Dorcas had turned around curious as to why Florence had stopped walking, “What is that?”

“I have no clue,” Florence was examining the paper bird when she noticed it was some ink marks on one of the folds. “I think it might just be a silly joke.”

“Yeah, maybe.” Dorcas looked at a clock and her eyes widened, “We should probably hurry if we want to make it to class on time.” 

Florence shoved the paper crane into her robes, said a quick goodbye to Dorcas, and hurried to her Charms class. When she arrived at the classroom, Florence waved at Edward, who was asking Flitwick some questions. She sat down in her place and took the crane out. She unfolded the paper and revealed a small note written with neat handwriting.

_ Dungeons. Sixth Hour. _


	7. A Second Chance

Florence kept reading the note over and over. It wasn’t signed and she didn’t recognize the handwriting, so she was stumped. She decided it would be best not to tell anyone about the note until she knew who had sent it. The less worried everyone is, the better. Charlotte had been a few minutes late to charms, and the moment Florence saw her she realized what the note probably meant.

“Hey, did Porter say anything about meeting during sixth?” Florence asked Charlotte as she sat next to her. Charlotte gave her a confused look.

“No. But we have practice today. Why’d you ask?”

“No reason.” So it wasn’t for Quidditch.

Charlotte hummed in response and began talking to a ravenclaw next to her. Florence returned her attention to the note, staring at it as if something would appear, a simple signature or clue to figure out who had sent the strange message. It couldn’t be Slughorn because he always signed it and had a slytherin deliver them, and it clearly hadn’t been anyone on the Quidditch team. 

Once class started, Florence tried to forget about the note. After all, there was a slim chance that the note didn’t lead to something bad. She spent all of class listening to Flitwick’s lesson but her thoughts would always wander back to the note. She had been quite impressed by the spell put on the paper crane. She tried to remember if she had seen someone do something similar before but no one came to mind. 

When class was dismissed, Florence picked up her things and hurried towards Dorcas’ classroom. Since Dorcas had History of Magic next period and Florence had off, she had gotten into the routine of walking Dorcas to her class. On the walk to the History of Magic classroom, Dorcas talked about how excited she was for this term’s arithmancy, but her expression changed when they reached Binn’s class.

“I hate this class. It's so boring. I can't believe I chose to take it, I should’ve dropped it.” Dorcas groaned.

“You really should have.” 

“We would have sixth off together and I could sleep and never listen to Binn’s boring voice ever again.”

“Oh, stop whining! You’ve only been with him a week,” Florence crossed her arms, “I had to sit through his awful lectures for a whole year and I survived. This won’t kill you.” 

“I think I would prefer death over history,” Dorcas grumbled. This made Florence giggle. Dorcas continued, “Anyways, have any plans for now? You should probably get caught up on what you missed today.”

Florence considered telling her about the note, and how curious she was. But instead she lied, “Not really. I was thinking of going out to the Quidditch pitch for a little and maybe later read the defense notes you gave me.” 

“Good idea. I’ll see you later, okay?” Dorcas said with a smile when they reached Professor Binns’ classroom. Florence gave Dorcas a wave, then turned and walked back down the hallway. 

Once she was alone, Florence opened her bag and fished out the note to read it once more. She knew how foolish it would be to go to the dungeons. She was a muggleborn walking all alone and, given the current climate within and outside of Hogwarts, that would not be a wise decision to make. The probability that the person who sent her the note was a blood purist wasn’t as unlikely as she wished it was. It was the perfect place to do it too, since most slytherins aren’t exactly known as muggle lovers and the dungeons were right next to their common room. 

She knew that it would be a stupid decision to follow the note’s instructions, but curiosity got the best of her and she was on her way to the dungeons. The hallways were silent. She considered returning to her dorm, but she figured that if someone had been there to attack her, there had already been many opportunities to do so. So, she might as well go find out who sent the letter and why. With a firm grip on her wand, she stood and waited.

Moments passed as she stood with her back against the wall. If Florence was being honest, she thought that this had been quite anticlimactic so far. She had been waiting for five minutes and the only people who had walked by had been a couple of second years going to the slytherin common room. After waiting a few more minutes, she figured it was some kind of prank and decided to leave. Having been around the Marauders for six years, she learned to always take pranks seriously. Florence wandered down the hall and stopped in front of the slytherin trophy case. The last Quidditch cup the slytherin team had won had been 3 years ago. Florence remembered how happy she, James, and Marlene had been when the gryffindor team had finally beat Slytherin and broke their winning streak during her 5th year, which also happened to be the same year James had become team captain. 

Florence was looking at pictures of the former slytherin Quidditch teams when she heard someone clear their throat from behind her. She could see the outline of a person in the reflection of the glass. She turned around to meet the eyes of Regulus Black. Her eyes’ widened and her breath hitched. She cursed internally; she should’ve known it would be Regulus. Things had been too calm ever since their first potion’s incident and, after today’s incident, she was sure that he’d be fuming. Before she could say anything to him, he turned and walked across the hall without a word, leaving her dumbfounded. Regulus turned around once he noticed Florence wasn't following him. She thought he was going to say something, but instead, he just raised an eyebrow and beckoned for her to follow him. 

Florence was hesitant at first, but followed him nevertheless. Regulus seemed to be alone, but she was still on edge. He was leading her through a narrow hall she didn't recognize. She made a mental note to check the map for it afterwards. Florence looked around and noticed there was nobody else near, and before he could keep walking, Florence grabbed his arm and turned him around.

“Is this some kind of set up? Let me just remind you that between you and me, my friends have the upper hand. I am not afraid of you. If you try anything with me, I will  _ not _ hold back.”

“Florence-”

“No. You don’t get to send me a weird note to get me all alone and not expect me to get angry. You might act all intimidating but you don’t scare me-”

“I asked Slughorn if we could use the Potion’s classroom to restart our potion.” 

She blinked. “Oh.”

Regulus looked uncomfortable. He looked down at Florence’s hand on his arm. She followed his gaze and she immediately let go. “You should’ve just said so.”

Regulus didn’t say anything more before he turned and kept walking down the hall. He opened a door and stepped inside. When Florence walked through the door, Regulus had gone to the ingredients section of the class. Florence stared at him as he looked at a paper and grabbed ingredients. 

Florence felt embarrassed for assuming the worst of Regulus, but in her opinion, it was a justified assumption. His friends were known for tormenting muggleborns and even though he had never gotten caught she was sure Regulus had probably been part of their antics. Florence took a deep breath and walked over to the stack of Potion textbooks. 

She walked over to the desk Regulus had set all the ingredients on. Florence set the textbook on the regermination potion’s instructions and began reading. This time she wanted to make sure there were absolutely no mistakes. Regulus ignited a flame under the cauldron, then glanced over to the ingredients. He opened his mouth, as if he were about to say something, but quickly closed it.

Regulus and Florence worked in silence, grabbing the materials they needed and prepping everything they needed to start. Florence knew that if they didn't talk to each other about what each of them was going to do, their potion would turn out the same as it had earlier that day. She didn’t want to be the first to apologize, after all, Regulus had been the one who had threatened her first. But Florence knew that if he was anything like his brother, he would also be too stubborn and proud to apologize. Florence didn’t want to be Regulus’ friend, but she hated the idea of being his enemy even more. Especially if they were going to be potions partners for the rest of the semester. She decided to suck up her pride and suddenly spoke, 

“ Look, I'm sorry for bossing you around all week, and how our first day went. The things you said to me were really not okay. And, I admit, I said some things too, but I didn’t mean them. I’m hoping you didn’t mean it either. Can we just move on and do our work? There’s no way we can work together if we don’t communicate.”

Regulus looked a little taken back by her words, but he only nodded and looked at Florence, “I can prepare  knotgrass while you stir th e Lethe River Water if yo u’d like.” 

Florence gave him a small smile and grabbed the Lithe River Water. It was the easiest ingredient the potion had so it would be a fast step. She began pouring the water on the cauldron and stirring for a few minutes, and once she decided it was stable, she lowered the flame and looked at Regulus who was finishing the knotgrass. 

“I’m going to start preparing the Blatta Pulvereus,” Regulus looked up at Florence and nodded. 

“Okay. I’ll do the Ashwinder Bile after I finish the knotgrass.” 

Florence and Regulus worked in silence except for a few comments about what ingredient either of them was preparing. Florence appreciated the silence, she was exhausted from all the noise going around Hogwarts’ halls, students wouldn’t stop talking about the Walker family or the war that was currently happening. Even though she didn't want to admit it, Florence thought Regulus’ company was calming. It felt as though nothing else mattered besides the potion they were brewing, the war, and everyone’s expectations were gone and it was just them and a cauldron. 

Regulus was stirring the potion while Florence cleaned the space they used to cut the knotgrass. She looked at Regulus and noticed he had a small smile on his face and shook his head. She looked at him confused, “What?”

“I was just thinking.” Regulus with a plain tone. Florence took this as a sign that he didn't want to talk, so she turned away. He spoke again, but with a humorous tone and a smile on his lips, “The potion smells much better now.” 

Florence let out a small laugh, remembering how awful the smell had been that morning, “Does it?” 

She walked over to the cauldron and Regulus handed her the stirring ladle. His hands were pale, with long fingers that were adorned with many rings. One ring that caught her eye was a silver ring with black details in the shape of the constellation Leo, which she was sure had been passed on to him by his family. Florence remembered that Sirius had a similar one, but had stopped wearing it a few years ago. 

Florence looked inside the cauldron and hummed in content. This time the potion was the sage colour it was meant to be and it smelled earthy, like wet soil after rain. Florence was stirring the potion when Regulus spoke quietly,

“ You’re not as bad at potions as I thought you’d be.” 

She was pleasantly surprised. She had not expected him to speak any more, let alone compliment her. “ You’re not too bad either,” she said, smiling softly, She knew this was the closest thing to a compliment she would ever receive from Regulus, but she was happy nonetheless. There were a few seconds of silence before she spoke again, “Thanks for asking Slughorn for the classroom. I figured I would’ve had to remake it all by myself.” 

“Of course. Uhm- We both have Astronomy together so I knew you had 6th off. I should’ve been more clear with my note. Sorry.”

“It’s okay. Just, don’t do it again,” Florence returned her attention to the potion. She hadn’t expected Regulus to apologize for anything, so she was definitely pleased. Florence looked at the clock on the wall and her eyes widened. “Shoot, sorry, I have to go to practice. I can check the potion tomorrow, since I know Slytherin has the pitch on Tuesdays. We can figure out the rest in class tomorrow.” She collected her things and gave a quick and polite wave before exiting the classroom.

Florence hurried to her dorm to leave her things. When she got there Dorcas was laying on her bed.

“Where have you been? I thought you were going to do schoolwork.”

“I had to talk with Slughorn about potion things,” Florence lied. She knew that if she told Dorcas she had spent a whole period with Regulus alone, Dorcas would overreact. 

She eyed Florence suspiciously, “What did he say? Are you switching partners?”

“I’m not allowed to,” Florence said as she got her Quidditch uniform together, “Something about learning to work with everyone. Besides, there’s nobody else I could be paired up with. Have you seen my shoes?”

“You should insist. I really don’t trust Regulus. You should try to stay as far from him as possible.”

Florence sighed, “I’d love to stay and chat, but I have practice. Ah, here they are,” she found her shoes and shoved them into her bag.

“Florence, you can’t just avoid talking about this.”

She ignored Dorcas’ remark and turned to leave. “See you at dinner.”

Florence made her way down to the Quidditch pitch and into the dressing tent, where she changed into her uniform and grabbed her broom. She had been a few minutes late but because it was the first official practice, Edward didn’t make her run laps. 

Flying had never felt better. She loved how the wind hitting her face felt and the view she had of the castle. Florence sighed in content as the rest of the team was warming up.

“Feels great, huh?” Edward said as he flew next to her and stopped. Florence hummed in agreement. They began throwing a quaffle back and forth. 

“I always forget how much I love Quidditch.” They stopped warming up for a few moments. The both of them looked out at the rest of the team, the new members were talking with the old members as they were tossing quaffles. “I have a good feeling about this year.” 

“Yeah me too,” Edward smiled brightly, “You know, I really thought you were going to get captain.”

Florence looked at him in disbelief, “Why would you ever think that?”

“Are you kidding?! The whole team loves you, and not to mention, you’re a great player.” 

She laughed, “My temper could never hold up to being captain. You, however, are going to be fantastic,” she said, reaching over and giving his shoulder a squeeze.

“You really think so?”

“I know so. Besides, you’re also pretty nice to look at, so that’ll help keep everyone's attention,” she teased, giving him a wink. 

Edward laughed loudly, “Oh that’s probably why we won two cups with James as captain, ” Edward joked. He looked over at the castle lost in thought, “How is he anyway? I heard he and Evans got married.”

“Yeah, it was sweet. They had a small ceremony over the summer,” Florence smiled remembering the wedding. She was excited for Quidditch, but it wouldn’t be the same without James or Marlene. James had taught her everything she knew about Quidditch. He always took it very seriously, and her and Marlene became friends through the team, so practice with them was never boring. 

“I always thought you two would end up together,” Edward interrupted her thoughts. 

Florence grabbed the quaffle and threw it at his head, “Say that again, I dare you.” 

Edward caught the quaffle and laughed, “Sorry, sorry.” He lifted his hands in surrender, “But honestly, I always thought you two were a thing. That’s why I never made a move on either of you,” he smirked and tossed the quaffle back. 

Florence threw it at his head again, “I’m going to kill you.”

“You’re too easy to mess with,” he looked at the rest of the team and turned back to Florence, “We should probably get the team together.” 

Edward whistled loudly and caught everyone’s attention, he pointed towards the ground to signal everyone to land. 

“Alright everyone, fly a few laps, then we’ll play a couple of mock games to learn our new player's strengths and weaknesses,” Edward said, landing in front of the crowd of Quidditch players. “We have a bit of a crowd today, but just ignore them.”

There were a few students in the stands, most of them were third or fourth years. Florence figured they had been sent by other team’s captains to see how the gryffindor team was. 

Charlotte walked towards Florence, “Wanna race?”

“You’re on, Green.” 

Florence kicked off of the ground and took off into the air. She and Charlotte flew side by side as they raced around the pitch. With the wind hitting her face and the ground so far away Florence felt something she hadn’t felt in months: pure relief. It seemed as if the thoughts that were constantly racing through her head would never cease. But at that moment, instead of thinking of the war, Regulus, or her classes, the only thing on her mind was flying. 

Practice had gone by quickly. Neither of the two new chasers compared to James but they were pretty decent players, they just needed to work on their technique. The new beater, Perseus, was extremely skilled but got distracted easily by the crowd. 

“Come on, Percy! You’re going to have a lot more people to deal with in an actual game!” Edward called out to him. Percy only nodded and pushed himself harder. By the end of the long practice, Percy was a sweating mess. It reminded Florence of her first practice with the Quidditch team, so she gave him a sympathetic smile and tossed him a water bottle. 

“Great job today, Perce.”

Percy’s breathing was heavy as he grabbed the water bottle Florence threw at him, “Thanks, Florence.” Percy was in the same year as she was, but this was the first year he had tried out for the Quidditch team. 

Florence nodded, “Promise most practices aren’t this exhausting. He just wanted to test your limits,” she said, looking towards Edward who was racing Charlotte across the pitch. “Don’t worry about it though, you definitely impressed everyone.”

This made him smile widely, “Thank you! I’m really excited for this season. I should probably head to the showers. See you later, Moreau.”

Just as he left, Edward and Charlotte stepped down towards Florence. They were both laughing at something Edward had said. 

“You’re so mean to them,” said Florence to Edward, which made Charlotte laugh even louder. 

“Isn’t he?” 

“I am not!” Edward huffed. “It was just for today, okay? I had to be a little rough otherwise they might not take me seriously.”

“You’re so dramatic,” Florence responded. 

Neither of them spoke as they drank some water and looked at the sunset. The stands were empty and the other members of the team had left for the changing room. 

“Paige is pretty good. I think if she works on her speed she’ll be great,” Charlotte broke the silence. Edward nodded and drank more water before speaking.

“Yeah, new chasers are pretty good. Perce is much better than I thought he would be, I wonder why never tried out before,” he said while looking at Florence, but she just shrugged in response. “We need to figure out our game strategies soon. We only have two weeks ‘till our first game.”

“It’s against Hufflepuff, so I’m sure we’ll be fine either way,” Charlotte joked. She turned to Florence, “We should probably go change. I don’t want to be late for dinner.” 

Florence agreed, she hadn’t eaten anything since lunch and was starving. They said their goodbyes to Edward, who wanted to stay and do a few laps before dinner, and headed to the showers. 

The changing room was empty, everyone had already left for dinner. Florence was quiet as the two girls arranged all of the Quidditch equipment in the lockers. Charlotte talked about how her day had been while Florence nodded her head or hummed in response. She didn’t want to be rude, but Florence’s day had been exhausting and she was not in the mood for conversation. Once they finished changing and organizing their equipment, they headed towards the great hall to meet Dorcas. 

Dorcas was sitting alone at the Gryffindor table, working on her charms essay. She looked up and smiled when she saw Charlotte and Florence walking towards her. 

“Hey! How was practice?” Dorcas asked the girls as they sat across her. 

“It was pretty good. Edward is trying to kill us though.” Charlotte responded making Dorcas laugh. 

“So I heard. I ran into Percy who looked like he had just fought a troll,”

“That’s not super far off. He had to deal with Edward throwing quaffles at him,” Florence said. She sat down and began filling her dinner plate. After a couple moments of quiet, she looked back up at Dorcas. 

“Have you heard any more about the Walkers?” Florence asked her with a serious expression on her face. 

Dorcas frowned and shook her head, “No. All I know is that Damian already left school and I don’t think he’s going to come back anytime soon.” 

Florence hummed and nodded, but stayed quiet after that. She could only imagine how Damian was feeling, and it made her heart feel heavy. Florence never got the chance to feel close with her parents; she had lost her mother when she was young and her father was never in the picture. All she had now was her grandmother, who was nice, but rather cold towards her and despised magic. After spending most of her childhood with her grandmother, she decided that the safest option for the both of them was to leave and move in with the Potters. The Potters and her friends were the closest things she had to a real family, and the thought of them dying made her feel sick to her stomach. 

“I’m sure Dumbledore will give a speech on what happened,” Charlotte spoke after a few moments of silence. “I should probably owl him. We aren’t close friends exactly, but we student-aided in the greenhouse for a semester together.” 

“I’m sure he’d appreciate it,” Dorcas said with a warm smile and Florence nodded in agreement. 

Before they could say anything else, Professor Dumbledore had stood up in front of everyone and began speaking.

“Good evening everyone. As many of you may have heard, a family of Hogwarts has been a victim of a terrible attack,” whispers broke out between most of the students, the slytherin table however remained relatively silent. 

“The Walkers had been students here a few years ago, both were from muggle descent and some of the most talented wizards I’ve taught. It is with heartache that we have received this terrible news. I will not lie to you, things aren’t as good as we wish they would be. I stand here asking a favour from all of you: be kind. May we use this tragedy as a reminder of what truly matters, unity. Unity between all types of people and creatures, and here at Hogwarts, unity between houses. We all have more in common than we have differences.” 

At this, Florence looked towards the Slytherin table and made eye contact with Regulus. It was as if they both were thinking the same thing, but neither were exactly sure what it was. The eye contact lasted for a few seconds but was broken by Florence when Dumbledore continued speaking. 

“We must fight hatred and evil by being the opposite. We shall have our dinner in a moment but before that, I want to end with a simple reminder, you are all welcome here at Hogwarts. Enjoy.” 

When he finished speaking food appeared on the tables and everyone began eating. Unlike most times, the great hall was quiet. Everyone who was speaking was doing it with hushed voices, and the rest were lost in thought. Florence stared at her food while listening to Dorcas and Charlotte talk about Damian. All of her hunger had slipped away and was replaced with tiredness. She looked around at all the students and wondered what they were thinking, jealous of some laughs she heard and curious for the quiet ones. It was easy to forget there was a war going on outside of Hogwarts, but it was moments like this that made it dawn on everyone. Her eyes met Dumbledore’s across the hall and he gave her a small nod, which Florence returned. It was the closest thing she had to reassurance. As long as Dumbledore was alive, they would always be safe. 


	8. Lycanthropy

The next two days had gone by relatively the same. Florence woke up, went to class, studied during sixth period, checked on the Regerminating potion, and had Quidditch practice or did more homework. Astronomy was getting harder and harder by the day and she wasn’t Professor Sinistra’s favorite, so she just suffered through the class and returned tired to her dorm. The perfect way to describe her week was exhausting. Unlike what she expected, she hadn’t heard anything from her friends outside of Hogwarts. Euphemia had sent her a letter Tuesday morning with some sweets and telling her that the family was okay. Florence answered right away, but she hadn’t received an answer back yet. 

“I’m bored, we should do something fun,” Dorcas said as she and Florence walked from Herbology to Defense Against the Dark Arts. 

“The Hogsmeade trip is next weekend, we can do something fun then,” Florence answered, looking through her bag, “Do you know if I left my book in our dorm? I can’t find it.” 

“You can borrow mine. Hogsmeade is too far, I want to do something fun today.” 

“We could have a picnic by the black lake?” Florence suggested while they entered the D.A.D.A classroom. They sat down and Dorcas pulled out her textbook she was going to share with Florence. 

Florence looked up at the board that said to open the textbook to page 394. Florence looked back at Dorcas and continued speaking, “I could go to the kitchens during sixth. We could meet there after class-Are you okay?” 

Dorcas had tensed up as she read the textbook, she looked up at Florence with an unreadable look in her eyes, “I’m not looking forward to today’s lesson.”

Dorcas handed Florence the book. Taking it in her hands and glancing down at the assigned page. Florence frowned. “Oh.”

“Yeah.” 

“Maybe Bale won’t be awful with it?” Florence said, trying to sound hopeful. 

Every year in Defense Against the Dark Arts, they had a lesson on Lycanthropy. The lesson in itself was usually tolerable, the textbook was just horribly outdated and biased. The worst thing about learning about werewolves was that teachers let students say their opinions out loud, which, every year without fail, led to Florence getting a week’s worth of detention. 

“Maybe,” Dorcas said. She looked around as if she was figuring out everyone who was in the class and what they could say. “I know you hate when I say this, but please don’t get in trouble. Otherwise, you won’t be able to go to Hogsmeade and I’ll feel bad and stay with you, when I'm supposed to meet Marlene there and I really want to go.”

“I’ll try my best, but you know I can’t promise you that.” 

Florence’s attention was brought back to the class when Professor Bale entered the room, “All right everyone, stop chattering open to page 394.”

Bale took a deep breath and looked over the class, “Before we start this unit I want to make one thing clear. No inappropriate comments will be allowed. If you have an issue with learning about Lycanthropy, feel free to exit the room and speak with Professor Dumbledore.”

Florence’s eyebrows raised at what Bale had said. She looked over at Dorcas, who had the same shocked expression. A small smile of relief appeared on their lips, and the both of them turned their attention back to Bale.

“Can someone give me a quick summary of what you have learned about Werewolves, please?” 

Adelaide Bulstrode raised her hand right away. She had never gotten along with Florence, she was a pure-blood slytherin who had taunted Florence ever since first year. She finally stopped bothering her after Sirius and James had pranked her following an incident involving Adelaide pushing Florence down the stairs. 

“We’ve learned the basics of them like their cycle and how they get in full moons. Last year we wrote an essay on how to recognise and kill werewolves.” 

Bale’s expression turned to a shocked one at what Adelaide had said, “They taught you how to kill werewolves?” 

The classroom was completely quiet, everyone was looking at Professor Bale as he sighed and rubbed his eyes in frustration. Dorcas looked at Florence with concern and mouthed ‘What's going on?’ 

“I don’t know,” Florence whispered back.

She furrowed her eyebrows, but before she could give any more thought to it, Bale spoke.

“Close your books. We’re reading something else instead.” Bale said firmly. He reached into a drawer in his desk and pulled out an article clipped out of a newspaper. He muttered something and swished his wand, making it multiply and float onto a students desk. “Mr Davies, pass these around please.” 

Florence received hers and skimmed it quickly. It was titled: _Lycanthropy and all its misconceptions. Written by a werewolf_. Florence had a small smile on her face as she looked up at Professor Bale who seemed distressed. 

“Professor, you don’t actually expect us to read this do you?” Adelaide interrupted the silence. 

“Yes, I do. And you will have to write an essay on it as well. It’s due in two weeks. You will write about one new thing you learned and your thoughts on how the Ministry can improve its policies.” 

“Professor, I agree with Adelaide. It’s like a monster saying he’s not a monster, it's outrageous,” Darius Pierce, another pureblood slytherin, added. 

Dorcas grabbed Florence’s wrist and gave her a pleading look. Florence raised her hands in defeat, it wasn’t worth the detentions just yet. 

“Read the article. You have the rest of class to work on it,” Bale said, taking a seat behind his desk.

“I won’t read such foolish things, professor-” 

“Can you shut it? Some of us are actually interested in learning.” Florence blurted. 

“Of course _you_ want to read it. I bet you have werewolf friends too, huh?” Darius sneered. 

Bale’s head snapped to the conversation. He was about to speak, but Florence stood up and responded faster than he could put an end to the conflict.

“I’d take a werewolf over you any day.”

“Shut up, Mudblood.”

“Oh, very original! Should I call you Death Eater or slimey pig? Which do you prefer?” Florence felt Dorcas grab her wrist but she shrugged it off. “I personally think the latter is more fitting.” 

“You are so dead, Moreau. I’ll make sure of it.” He said, taking out his wand and pointing it towards Florence. 

“Enough!” Bale shouted. He pointed his wand towards Darius, causing his wand to fly out of his hand and into Professor Bale’s. “We use wands for learning, not for threats. 50 points from Slytherin and 30 from Gryffindor.” 

“But Professor-” Florence started.

“Miss Moreau, you will see me after class. Mr. Pierce, see me after school for detention, and I will be speaking with Slughorn to see how we will further your punishment.” Bale said, his voice firm. The class was silent, having never heard Professor Bale raise his voice like he had. 

“But Professor, I didn’t do anything. It is not fair-”

“Florence, that is enough.” His eyes pierced into hers. He then looked back at the rest of the students, “Read in silence for the rest of the class.”

Florence sat back down with a huff. She didn’t want to meet Dorcas’ eyes, for she knew exactly what she was thinking. She also knew there was no way to keep a detention secret from everyone back home, seeing as Mcgonagall would send a letter to them explaining what she had done. She sighed and began reading. 

As class was coming to an end, Florence was becoming more anxious and couldn’t stay still. Usually, getting in trouble didn’t really bother her so much, but the combination of receiving a death threat from another student and making her favorite teacher angry made her feel restless. She kept looking up at the clock and back to her paper. She had barely read anything all class. 

“Stop moving so much. You’re making me nervous.” Dorcas whispered. She hadn’t said anything to Florence in all of class.

“I can’t. He’s gonna kill me.” 

“Darius won’t hurt you, he’s a coward.” 

“What? No, I’m talking about Bale.”

“Out of everyone in this room, I’m sure Bale is the least likely to murder you.”

“What if he’s secretly a blood purist?”

“Florence, He’s a half-blood. Now shut up and let me work.”

Florence shook her head, “You can’t assume anything these days, Dorcas.” 

“Fine. I’ll wait for you outside in case he kills you.” 

“Thank you.” 

“But you know what would've been better? If you could keep your mouth shut and we could go have lunch right away.” 

Before Florence could respond, class was dismissed. She looked at Dorcas with pleading eyes, she truly didn’t want to be alone with Bale. 

“I’ll wait in the hall. Good luck,” Dorcas said as she gathered her things and left. 

Florence looked around the classroom, there were still a few students left, most of which were talking while putting their books in their bag. Her eyes stopped when she reached Regulus, he was talking with Xavier about what Florence assumed was quidditch practice. 

She stood up and walked towards them. Xavier saw her before Regulus did. 

“Hey Florence,” he said, making Regulus’ eyes snap up towards her. 

“Hi,” She gave him a small smile. She looked at Regulus, hoping he would get the hint and make Xavier leave. 

“It was, uh, nice to see you,” Xavier said awkwardly. He grabbed his bag and put it over his shoulder, “I’ll see you later, Black.” 

Regulus nodded at him and turned back to look at Florence. His eyebrows were raised and he looked annoyed with her. 

“I know it’s my turn to check on the potion today, but I’m pretty sure I’ve just booked myself a detention. Can you do it today? I’ll make it up to you later.” She looked at him hoping to get a reaction, but he remained quiet. She continued, “I can write all of the essay too.” 

He sighed loudly and rolled his eyes. 

“You’re also going to clean our supplies for two weeks,” he finally said. Florence thought it was an overreaction, but she nodded anyway. “And Florence? Unless we’re in potions, don’t talk to me. I don’t need to be seen with someone like you.” 

And with that, he turned and left, leaving Florence shocked. She thought they had started getting along. She wouldn't consider him a friend, but over the past week they had worked together relatively well. How could she be so naive? She had forgotten he was a total arsehole. 

“Florence,” Bale’s voice came from the front of the classroom. He moved some of the things he had on top of his desk and gestured to the chair in front of it, “Take a seat please.” 

Hesitating, Florence sat down across from him. 

“Would you like a cup of tea? Or biscuits maybe?” 

“No, thank you.” 

He shrugged but began preparing a tea for himself. “Okay, let’s talk.”

“Professor, you can’t give me detention-”

“Florence-”

“No, respectfully sir, don’t interrupt me. All I did was defend myself, and if that’s enough to get me in trouble then so be it. But you will hear from my guardians. And next time somebody raises their wand to me, I’ll hex them till they can't walk.” 

She stopped talking when she heard Bale laugh. 

“You think I’m being funny?” 

“No, I do not. But you’re not in trouble.” 

“I’m not?” 

“You’re not. Why do you think I asked to see you after class?” 

“You didn’t like me interrupting your class?” 

“Not that either. Florence, I wanted to thank you. Your willingness to stand up for what you believe in is a trait that so many lack these days.” He paused and took a sip of his tea, “But you’re reckless. There are appropriate moments to say things and there are moments- people where you just keep it in.” 

“I can’t ‘keep it in’, Professor. Because to you it might be some comments, but for people like me, staying quiet is giving them power over you.”

“I’m not saying that. Look,” he said, putting his cup down. “You're never going to get detention with me for defending yourself or others. But I don't think other teachers will be as understanding.” 

She sighed and nodded. “Yeah, trust me I know. I’m pretty sure at least 3 teachers have me on their black list.”

Bale’s eyebrows raised and a worried look appeared on his face. 

“No no no,” a smile raised on her lips as she waved her hands, “That was a joke, don’t worry.”

“Okay, but if you have any issues with them you can come to me and we’ll figure it out.” 

“Thank you Professor, really, but I’ll be fine.” She glanced up at the clock and noticed the time. If she wanted to be able to eat lunch and fetch her things, she knew should leave soon.

“You should probably get going. But I mean it, if you need anything at all I’m here.” He said standing up. 

“I will. But honestly, you don’t have to worry. I have enough people worrying about me already. I’ll see you tomorrow!” Florence gave him a smile as she stood up from her chair and turned to leave.

She walked out of the classroom and jumped when she heard a loud sigh come from behind her.

“Melin! Dorcas, you scared me,” she was sitting on the floor and started gathering a few books she had taken out while she waited for Florence. 

“How did it go? Did you get detention?” Dorcas asked standing up. 

Florence shrugged, “It was okay and no, I didn’t. He just told me to be more careful, that's all.” 

“Oh, we would really get along then.” She teased Florence, making her roll her eyes, “C'mon let’s go, I’m starving.” 

The rest of the day had gone by pretty quickly. Florence hadn’t been able to talk to Regulus since their last conversation, so she couldn’t explain that she had time to check the potion after all. She didn’t mind having a day off, but she really didn’t want to clean everything for two weeks. 

Florence spent her evening in the library with Edward studying for their transfiguration exam. Edward insisted on being on top of his Transfigurations work, because when he was appointed captain, he promised McGonagall he would improve his grades. With all the studying, Florence was exhausted and had decided to take a quick nap before Astronomy. 

Florence woke up just in time for class and rushed through the halls towards the astronomy tower. She had been struggling with astronomy, but Professor Sinistra was rarely alone so she hadn’t found the right time to ask for help, so she just pushed through and hoped for the best. 

She slowed down when she got closer to the tower, she saw Sinistra’s back as she stared up into the night sky. Nobody else seemed to be there, so she walked faster up the stairs to speak with her. 

“Hello, Professor,” Florence said softly, so she wouldn't startle her. 

“Hello, Florence. How are you?” The professor turned. Her voice was soft and rich. 

“I’m fine, thanks. I did want to ask you some things, If that's okay?” Sinistra looked at her waiting for Florence to continue.

“So if I’m being honest, I’ve been struggling a bit with the content of the class,” she paused and looked at Sinistra who was still, so Florence kept talking, “I was wondering if I could come to your office at some point and you could help me.”

“Oh! Well why didn’t you just say so? We have a few minutes before class so you can ask right now,” she said with a soft smile on her lips.

Florence didn’t know how to tell her that a few minutes weren’t enough. 

“I don’t understand the shapes, or their names, or how we identify what type of stars they are. Genuinely Professor, I think a meeting might be better.” 

“Hm, yes I agree. Well if you’d like, I can ask Regulus to be your partner for today, he might explain some things in a way you might understand-”

“No! No, that won’t be necessary. I like working alone. Thanks though,” Florence said and started walking towards the telescope to get it ready for class. 

The easiest part of astronomy was getting the telescope ready, all Florence had to do was adjust the eyepiece and focuser to her liking. She was reading over her textbook to try to get ahead on what they were learning that day when she heard someone walking towards her. She looked up and saw Regulus standing a few feet away from her, with an unreadable expression on his face. 

“Do you need something?”

“How was detention?” Florence could hear the bitterness of his words. She only narrowed her eyes and waited for him to elaborate. 

“I had to manage both practice and checking on our potion while you were getting cozy with Porter in the library,” 

Florence scoffed, “We were studying. Besides, I tried to tell you, but I thought I wasn’t allowed to talk to you, remember?” 

“You could’ve sent a note.” 

“Oh, so we’re not allowed to speak, but I can send you cryptic notes?”

“Exactly-”

“Mr. Black, I see you’re helping Miss Moreau?” Professor Sinistra said, making Regulus look at Florence with confusion. 

“Yes, he was helping me with the constellations’ names,” Florence said quickly, plastering a smile onto her face and putting her hands behind her back.

“That’s great! Getting help from peers is always easier. Well, we’re going to start in a few minutes, so I suggest you get your telescopes ready,” She said and walked towards another pair of students. 

“What was that about?” Regulus asked Florence, his eyebrow arched.

“Nothing. Look, I’m still going to do what we agreed so I don’t see why you’re so upset.” 

“Just let me know next time. I don’t want to waste any more of my time.” And with that, Regulus turned around and walked away. 

Florence spent most of the rest of class spacing out. She kept thinking about her conversation with Bale and how it was similar to what everyone kept telling her. All of the adults in her life seemed to worry quite a bit about her, and now her Professor as well? She was beginning to feel sick of it. She could handle herself.

Once class ended, Florence went straight to bed when she got to her dorm, Charlotte was already sleeping and Dorcas was cramming for a test in History. With a mixture of the silent dorm room and the exhaustion she felt from the day, the moment her face hit the pillow she fell asleep.

Florence was woken up when she felt a hand shake her shoulder. Groaning, she opened her eyes to see Dorcas standing next to her bed. She took in the sight with her eyes and furrowed her eyebrows when she looked at her feet.

“Why are you wearing shoes?”

“Shh, Charlotte is sleeping,” Dorcas whispered and sat on the side of Florence’s bed. “I’m hungry.”

“So?” Florence whispered back. 

“So, come with me to the kitchens.”

Florence groaned and rubbed her eyes, “What time is it?”

“One in the morning.”

Florence groaned again and buried her face on her pillow, “Let me sleep.”

“I waited for you after defense today,” Dorcas’ voice a little louder, but Florence remained still, “Are you really going to let me, a vulnerable young lady, walk around the school alone at night?” 

“...yes?” 

“Florence!”

“Fine. Let’s go.”

Dorcas pulled the covers off of Florence while she was stretching, “I’ll grab your shoes.”

Making sure she wouldn’t wake Charlotte, Florence stood up from her bed and tip-toed to her trunk. She started taking things out of her trunk as quietly as she could, reaching into the bottom of it.

“What are you doing?” Dorcas whisper-shouted. 

“I’m looking for the map the boys gave me,” Florence said with her hand searching around inside her trunk. 

Charlotte groaned and moved in her sleep, making Florence and Dorcas halt their movements. They let go of the breaths they were holding when she rolled over and continued sleeping peacefully. If Charlotte found out they were sneaking out after hours, she would definitely tell one of the prefects, resulting in Dorcas and Florence getting in trouble with McGonagall. 

“Map? What map?” Dorcas finally whispered. 

Florence kept moving her hand until she felt a piece of parchment in the tips of her fingers, “A-ha, I found it.” 

Dorcas’ face fell when she saw an empty piece of folded parchment, “Florence, we’re wasting time. Charlotte could wake up any second.” 

“Okay, let’s go.”

Florence and Dorcas sneaked out of their dorm as quietly as possible and into the dark and silent hallway. Dorcas raised her wand but Florence grabbed her wrist to stop her. 

“Don’t, we might wake someone up with the light. Wait till we get to the common room.” Florence was speaking as quietly as she could.

They stayed close as they walked down the stairs, both with a hand on the wall to make sure they wouldn't fall. The common room was dimly lit by the dying fire. Florence looked around making sure there wasn’t anybody there before walking in. She turned to Dorcas and grinned. 

“What?”

“I’m so happy you asked me to break the rules with you,” Florence’s voice was enthusiastic, “You know what this means?” 

“What does it mean?” 

“That if we get in trouble, it would be your fault and I would be the victim of your coercion.” 

Dorcas glared at her and tried to hide her smile, “Stop using words that you don’t know the meaning of.”

“Ooh, Feisty!” 

“Shut up. Let’s go.”

“Wait!” 

Groaning Dorcas looked at Florence slightly annoyed, “What now?”

A smirk appeared on Florence’s lips. She raised her wand to the parchment, “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.” 

Slowly, writing began to appear across the formerly empty parchment, reading: _Mssrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs are proud to present The Marauders Map_ Florence unfolded the parchment to reveal an intricate map of Hogwarts to Dorcas. Her eyes widened and a small gasp left her lips. 

“Woah!” 

“I know, right?”

“And the boys did this?” she asked, her eyes locked on the map. Dorcas’ finger lightly traced some of the names that appeared on the map. 

“Yeah a few years ago. I was just as surprised as you, it’s some really advanced magic.”

“And it shows everyone?”

“Everyone. Let’s go.”

Dorcas nodded her head excitedly. They left the common room quietly and in the dark, and once they were outside and made sure there wasn’t anyone near, they lit the tips of their wands. 

They both sighed in relief when they reached the great hall, seeing as it was empty and peaceful. A few stray beams of moonlight came in through the windows and illuminated the hall enough that they didn’t need to use lumos anymore. They walked through the hall towards the staircase, Dorcas was walking in front of Florence, while she trailed behind to look at the map. They made their way to the hufflepuff hall and started looking for the painting that led to the kitchens. 

“Over here! I found it,” Florence exclaimed. Dorcas walked over to her and looked at the painting: a fruit basket. “Would you like to do the honors?” 

A huge grin appeared on Dorcas’ face as she nodded excitedly. She reached out her hand to the painting and tickled the pear. Slowly, it opened, and Florence and Dorcas stepped into the kitchens. 

There were a few house elves cleaning and straightening up, but it was much emptier than it would be during the day. Florence let Dorcas enter the room first so she could stay back and take in the scene. Ever since the first time she saw a house elf, Florence had been afraid of them. It took a few years for her to become comfortable with the Potter’s house elf, but any time she came to the kitchens, she made sure to let whoever she was with do the talking. 

“Hello!” Dorcas’s voice was soft as she spoke to one of the house elves, “Could we get some scones, please? Oh, and a small chocolate bundt.” 

Dorcas looked back at Florence and raised her eyebrows as if to ask if she wanted something else, but Florence shook her head. The house elf nodded and disappeared into the kitchen. Florence sat on one of the counters and let her eyes wander around the kitchen, taking in all the details. She glanced at Dorcas, who was doing the same. 

Not many students knew where the kitchens were, and even if they did know, it was hard to find a good moment to visit and ask for food. And it was a whole other deal to get the house elves to like you. Even though Florence had come to the kitchens many times before, she was still stunned by how chaotic it could be: there was food everywhere and giant towers of plates.

A loud CRACK was heard and the house elf appeared once again, but this time with the chocolate bundt and scones. The elf gave them to Dorcas and disapparated once again. Dorcas reached out, and a huge grin appeared onto her face as she took a bite of one of the scones. Florence hadn’t seen her that excited since they had come to Hogwarts. Dorcas looked up at her and gave her a guilty smile. 

“Sorry, I was starving and forgot about you,” she teased and passed Florence the chocolate bundt. 

Florence took a bite and closed her eyes in content. It didn’t compare to Lily’s baking, but it was still undeniably delicious. There was a comfortable silence in the air as they ate, but it was interrupted by Dorcas’ laughter. Florence looked at her and started laughing too. Their laughs got louder by the second, but neither cared if someone heard them.

“What?” Florence asked after her laugh dialed down, but Dorcas was still laughing, “What? Tell me.” 

“It’s just that, there’s a war going on, and we’re just here eating scones,” Dorcas’ words were muffled by her laugh. 

Florence looked down at her cake and burst out laughing. 

A chorus of laughter erupted between them once more, until their stomachs began to hurt. The mixture of exhaustion and the ridiculousness of the situation made it hard to stop.

Dorcas wiped her tears and rested her back on the wall behind her. Their breaths had calmed down and only the faint noise of elves working filled the air again. 

“Do you want to go to the Astronomy Tower? We could finish eating and look at the stars,” Florence suggested after a few moments of silence. “It’s supposed to be super clear tonight and we might catch Jupiter if we go quickly.”

Dorcas sat up straight, “I thought you were failing that class?” 

“I hate you. You always kill the moment,” Florence glared at Dorcas, who just giggled in response.

“Yeah, let’s go,” Dorcas stood up and Florence followed suit. She turned towards her and smirked before saying, “You’re officially responsible if we’re caught.”

Florence rolled her eyes, “Yeah, yeah. As always. Can you grab some napkins please?”

Nodding, Dorcas walked over to a drawer, took out a few napkins, and wrapped them around the leftover scones and the bundt. Florence grabbed the map to make sure there weren’t any teachers around, as well as to figure out the best way to the tower. 

Opening the painting, they walked out quietly. Dorcas walked in front and carried the food, while Florence looked at the map as they walked back towards the great hall. A small gasp escaped Florence’s lips when she saw Regulus Black’s name appear on the map. She followed his name with her eyes as he walked through the corridors, but it quickly disappeared out of nowhere. Frowning, she scanned through the map trying to find him again, but instead of finding Regulus’ name, she saw Filch coming closer to her and Dorcas. 

Grabbing the back of Dorcas’ shirt, Florence pulled her back behind a wall. Before Dorcas could say anything, Florence covered her mouth with her hand.

“Filch is around the corner,” her voice was very quiet, her lips almost touching Dorcas’ ear as she spoke. 

Nodding her head, Dorcas stayed quiet. Florence kept her hand over Dorcas’ mouth, until she felt something hot and wet press against her palm. 

“Eugh!” Florence yanked her hand away and began to complain, but stopped when Dorcas shushed her. Glaring, she spoke again, whisper-shouting, “You licked me!” 

“Your hands smell weird.”

Florence widened her eyes and, before she could stop herself, she stomped on Dorcas’ left foot, making her yelp in pain. 

“Who’s there?” Filch’s voice filled the air. 

They stared at each other with panicked eyes. They had to think quick, but luckily, Florence was good on her toes.

“Run.” 

Florence grabbed Dorcas’s wrist and sprinted out from behind the wall. They ran as fast as they could through the corridors of Hogwarts, taking every turn they could in an attempt to lose Filch. 

“Over there!” Dorcas pointed to a door. They sprinted towards it, pointing her wand to the knob she whispered a spell and unlocked it.

Florence closed the door and whispered,“Muffliato.” 

The door had led to a broom cupboard. Small giggles escaped the girls’ lips and they were catching their breath. Filch’s footsteps were getting near, Florence brought a finger over her lip, shushing Dorcas who was struggling to stay quiet. Once they were sure the coast was clear, they burst into laughter.

Once they calmed down, they took in their surroundings, there were a few brooms and other cleaning supplies in the cupboard. Dorcas looked at everything in the tiny room in hopes of finding something interesting, while Florence stared at the map trying to figure out where they were. In their silence, they heard muffled voices coming from the room next door. 

“Did you hear that?” Florence looked up to Dorcas, who had also stopped moving. 

“Yes, I think it came from the wall,” Dorcas pointed to the wall in front of the door.

Leaving the map on top of one of the shelves, Florence got near the wall trying to listen to the sound again. She stopped moving when she heard the same voices, only this time they were louder. They both had the side of their face pressed against the wall as they eavesdropped in on the conversation. 

“I disagree, Christopher. Our job is to teach them the set curriculum approved by the ministry, not our personal politics.” A deep voice spoke, “We can’t parade war opinions in our job. It’s unprofessional.” 

Florence and Dorcas looked at each other. 

“Addington?” Florence’s voice was barely above a whisper. Professor Addington was the arithmancy professor, and when Florence had his class, She hated him so much that she dropped the class. She was surprised he would be friendly enough to hangout with Mcgonagall and Bale. 

“Check the map.” 

Dorcas reached out her hand to grab the map and immediately started looking for their location. Florence's attention returned to the conversation.

“It’s not an opinion, it's a fact. The treatment of werewolves has been horrifically inhumane since before the war, and it will only continue after it unless we start teaching students the truth!” Florence knew who it was right away, Professor Bale’s voice was firm and sounded somewhat angry.

“I’m afraid that what the ministry says will have to be taken as the truth,” McGonagall spoke with a much softer tone. 

Florence felt a tug on her sleeve, she looked at Florence who showed her the map, there were four names on the map: Christopher Bale, Minerva McGonagall, Horace Slughorn, and Gregor Addington. 

“You and I both know the ministry is as corrupt as can be. Besides, if the ministry was telling the truth and was genuine about werewolves then why is wolfsbane still unapproved?” 

“Wolfsbane?” Professor Addington asked. Florence could hear the mocking tone laced in his voice.

“It’s a potion. It relieves most of Lycanthropy's symptoms. Isn’t that right, Slug?”

“Oh, well I don’t know. I’ve heard of it but as a myth more than anything. Though it would be amazing if approved,” Slughorn’s tone was very vague, as though he didn't want to upset anyone. 

Florence’s eyes widened and her mouth was slightly open. If there was a potion that could help Remus, then she would have to start on it as soon as possible. She tried getting closer to the wall as if it will make her hear clearer, eager to hear Bale speak about this potion. 

“Exactly, and why do you think the ministry would disapprove of a potion that helps werewolves have complete control over their senses? Because they want them isolated from society.” 

“Christopher, it is a very complicated potion. It contains aconite, which can be deadly if the potion is not done correctly.” 

“Yes, I am aware. But so many potions have ingredients that could be deadly if not done correctly. The ministry is just using it as an excuse because they don’t care for werewolves.”

“You’re being ridiculous, Bale. The ministry is not your enemy.” 

“It’s certainly not my friend. Neither mine, nor muggleborns. Did you hear they are going to start requiring all muggleborns to register their blood status? What’s next, huh?”

Florence was shocked by this. She didn’t know she would have to register. Fleamont had once told her that the ministry might start taking harmful decisions if the war came to worse, but she couldn't imagine it would be soon. Her thoughts were interrupted when Dorcas spoke softly. 

“Let’s back to the dorm. I’m tired, and the coast seems clear.”

Florence nodded. Carefully, they stepped out of the broom cupboard and started walking towards their dorm. Florence forgot about the ministry, and her thoughts were quickly replaced by wolfsbane. If she could get information about the procedure, then she could get the ingredients in no time. She would have to do lots of research, but she was sure she could manage. 

“You’re going to do it, aren’t you? ” Dorcas had stopped walking and turned to face her. 

Florence gave her a small smile and shrugged, “Let’s just say I’m going to Bale’s office hours tomorrow.”


End file.
